Hockey is still one of the most sought after sports in the Olympics stage. The latest Paris Olympics saw India clinching on their second successive bronze medal. The competition ultimately met fan expectations, and FIH president Tayyab Ikram was thrilled with the outcome.

In an interview with InsideSport, Ikram, who is headed for his second term as FIH chief disclosed about Indian performance in the Paris Olympics tournament as well as the weakening performance of Asian teams like Pakistan, Japan and South Korea in hockey is worrisome.

Ikram stated - “I think that (Paris Olympics) was the best Olympic games for our athletes. The kind of experience our players and coaches had was wonderful. So yes, in those terms, the Games were a huge success,”

The chief stated Pakistan has to follow the Indian Hockey technique - “Today it’s important to know that in high performing structure, you need a very strong financial model. So, if i say in Paris we had 12 men team and 12 women team, there were still equally decent 6-8 teams outside the Games. They were not able to go to Paris or could not qualify for the games. One of the reasons is the finances the federations have. So, only a strong financial model can bring teams like Pakistan back to the Olympics.”

Tayyab Ikram suggested that nations like Pakistan can look to India's model, which has successfully established a robust financial system.

Ikram added - “You can see a very successful model in India. You just follow what India did; they recognise the consistent approach, they recognise the professionalism in coaching and they also recognise that how important is to have a strong financial model around top athletes. So there is something for Pakistan to learn,”.