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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Jason Rodrigues

After nearly 25 years, GB men's hockey poised for another shot at Olympic gold

The last time Great Britain's men's hockey team reached an Olympic final they came away with a gold medal, having soundly beaten Germany 3-1. For a brief moment the team who put their 9 to 5 jobs on hold to compete in Seoul became superstars, their win celebrated by British sports fans anxious for any medal success to improve on the meager tally of four golds.

The match also gave us a memorable, and unexpected, gem from the commentary box, when the BBC's Barry Davies' impeccable impartially slipped for once. On witnessing GB winger, Imran Sherwani, scoring an emphatic third gold, Davies uttered the immortal line: "Where, oh, where were the Germans? And frankly, who cares?"

Later that year, the team were further rewarded as the British public voted them as BBC Sports Personality Team of the Year.

In the Guardian's match report, GB' s win over Germany was described as a 'heart-warming success'.

match report
Published in the Guardian 3/10/1988. Click on image for full text.

In the same edition, Matthew Engel seemed quite moved by the team's gold medal success, suggesting their remarkable quest exemplified the Corinthian spirit of the Olympic movement.

Medal table
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