Before the ball started rolling and the sticks struck hard towards the goals at the Stade Yves-du-Manoir in Paris, both the bookmakers and the fans had minimal expectations for China. This is surprising, considering the Asian giant had been on an excellent trajectory under the guidance of one of the most legendary figures in the sport’s history, Alyson Annan.

The coach, originally from Wentworthville, took charge of the promising Chinese women's field hockey team in May 2022. Since then, their rapid ascent in the FIH (International Hockey Federation) rankings has been meteoric. Annan herself reflected on this achievement during a press conference, stating, "We've gone from being ranked 14th in the world to the top 6 in just a few months."

Yet, this didn’t seem to convince the experts. Before the competition kicked off, China was ranked as the 6th favorite out of the 12 teams competing for the gold in Paris, with odds of 25/1.

We have to go back to Beijing 2008, when China played at home, with the support of their crowd, to find the first and only time the vast Asian nation reached an Olympic podium in women's hockey. It was a silver, losing the final to, once again, the Netherlands—arguably the world’s biggest powerhouse alongside Australia—.

This time, on 9 August, when the Paris program scheduled the women’s final, the Netherlands was the heavy favorite to clinch consecutive golds (after doing so in Tokyo 2020). However, Annan’s game plan did not sit well with the Oranje. China stunned their illustrious rivals early in the match with a perfect deflection by Chen Yi from close range.

With the score against them, time was slipping away, and with it, the Dutch players' composure as they saw the scoreline not in their favor. The Dutch nerves were on edge. That was until the 51st minute, when the tournament’s top scorer, Yibbi Jansen, once again displayed her skill in the penalty corner. 1-1.

After a tremendous campaign throughout the Olympic tournament, China held back and relied on luck to try to snatch the gold in the shoot-out. Fate led to a penalty shootout, which Paul Van Ass’s team controlled to win their fifth Olympic gold medal.

Far from being discouraged, Alyson Annan stood tall in the press conference and, boldly, predicted what to expect in the next edition in Los Angeles 2028: "We’re going for the gold." Annan’s tactical brilliance, combined with a talented generation of young Chinese players, will now seek to break the Olympic championship curse, which is increasingly within their grasp.