Road to Rio Olympics beckons for Irish hockey

Life is good for both Ireland’s senior teams as they begin the final preparation phase for their Olympic qualification campaigns.

The road to Rio was mapped out for both this week, after they won their World League 2 tournaments. World League 3 is next on the agenda in June, with the men bound for Antwerp, Belgium and the women in Valencia, Spain.

Avoiding long trips to far-flung destinations is a major boon to the Irish Hockey Association’s coffers - initially Craig Fulton’s men were thought to be heading for Argentina, but instead thousands of euros will be saved as they make the short hop to the continent.