Sjoerd Marijne Officially Links Up With India Women's Hockey Team As Head Coach

Dutchman Sjoerd Marijne officially rejoined the Indian women’s hockey team as chief coach on Wednesday, renewing his association with the squad after a successful four-year tenure from 2017 to 2021.

His reappointment occurred nearly two weeks ago, following his guidance of the team to a historic fourth-place finish at the Tokyo Olympics. Hockey India shared a photo of Marijne being welcomed by the country’s leading sports officials and federation administrators.

Marijne also posted a photo of his arrival at IGI Airport, captioned “With fresh energy back in India”.

The 51-year-old will be supported in his role by Matias Vila, who will serve as the team’s analytical coach.

With fresh energy back in India pic.twitter.com/Dr5PFgAuhl

— Sjoerd Marijne

(@SjoerdMarijne) January 14, 2026

Marijne’s first significant challenge will be the Women’s World Cup Qualifiers in Hyderabad, taking place from March 8 to 14.

He replaced Harendra Singh, who resigned in December last year due to poor results.

During his initial stint as chief coach, Marijne led the Indian women’s hockey team to the World League semi-finals in 2017, and secured silver medals at the 2018 Women’s Asian Champions Trophy and Jakarta Asian Games. In 2019, India qualified for the Tokyo Olympics by defeating the USA 6-5 on aggregate in the FIH Olympic Qualifiers.

Marijne resigned after India’s loss to Great Britain in the bronze medal playoff match in Tokyo in 2021, citing personal reasons.

The national coaching camp is set to commence on January 19 at SAI in Bengaluru.

With PTI Inputs