Hockey, Men

In 1984, the British hockey players had won their first medal since 1948, even though they had been called in as a last-minute substitute. They proved their bronze prize was not a fluke by performing consistently in the subsequent annual Champions Trophy tournaments. At the 1986 World Championships, held in London, they even made it to the final, in which they were beaten by Australia. That tournament proved to be a disaster for Pakistan and India, finishing last and next-to-last. The two formerly dominant hockey nations improved at the Seoul Games, but not enough to reach the semis.

Britain did, and took revenge on Australia for the defeat two years earlier, helped by a hat-trick by Sean Kerly. For the final, the odds were stacked against them. They had not beaten their West German opponents in 30 years, and had in fact lost to them in the elimination round. Neglecting history, Imran Sherwani and Kerly put their team ahead 3-0 before the Germans could get a consolation goal. Not worried by this, the British even found time to let all substitutes play so they would also receive a gold medal, the UK’s first hockey gold in 68 years.