Herman Kruis appointed as coach of Indian Men & Women Junior Hockey Teams

Hockey India on Tuesday announced the appointment of Herman Kruis, from the Netherlands with over two decades of coaching experience, as Coach of Indian Men and Women Junior Hockey Teams.

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During his stint in India, Herman Kruis will oversee the preparations of Indian Junior Men and Women's Teams ahead of the all-important FIH Men's Junior Hockey World Cup 2023 in Malaysia and FIH Women's Junior Hockey World Cup 2023 in Santiago respectively later this year. In his vast coaching experience, Herman Kruis has worked with Den Bosch ladies as their Head Coach. And during his tenure, the team won the European Cup eight times in a row. Herman Kruis was also the National Head Coach for the Netherlands Indoor Women's Hockey Team between 2006 to 2008. Moreover, he was also the National Head Coach for the Netherlands Outdoor team between 2008 to 2010.

In Herman Kruis' most recent stint, he was the National Head Coach of the Belarus Indoor and Outdoor team from 2016 to August 2023. Kruis is a certified FIH Coach-Educator.

The Men's Junior World Cup will be held in Kuala Lumpur between December 5-16. Whereas the women's event will be taking place in Santiago, Chile, from November 29 to December 10. As for the men, Argentina is the two-time defending champions, while India won the last title in 2016. For women, the Dutch are the four-time reigning champions, while the Indians are yet to emerge successful.

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Following his appointment, Kruis expressed his delight and happiness with the junior Indian side. "I am looking forward to this new role with Hockey India. There are some very talented players in the Indian junior men's and women's hockey teams. The next four months leading up to the Junior World Cups are exciting and at the same time an important phase in the teams' preparations. I look forward to working with them to achieve the desirable results,"

Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey backed Kruis's experience to come in handy for the Indian junior sides. "I believe his experience will further boost our prospects at the FIH Junior Hockey World Cup 2023. He will be working closely with Tushar Khandker, coach of India junior women's side, and CR coach, India junior men's side,"