Tokyo 2020 - Kookaburras v Japan Preview
Published Fri 23 Jul 2021
The wait is over and the stage is set as the world number one ranked Kookaburras open the Tokyo 2020 Olympic hockey tournament against host nation Japan on Saturday 24 July.
But there will be one thing missing from the opening match at the Oi Hockey Stadium and it could provide the Kookaburras with their biggest advantage…a crowd.
When the Kookaburras take to the pitch, the seats won’t be filled with 10,000 flag-waving Japanese fans cheering on the host nation.
One only needs to look at the history books to see the impact a home crowd can have with the Australian men’s and women’s hockey teams both medalling at the Sydney Games.
This is supported by research from Victoria’s Swinburn University which found an Olympic host nation will win more than three times their usual percentage of medals thanks to a hometown advantage.
