New Delhi, Jan. 27 -- Janneke Schopman was grinning ear-to-ear while hugging the support staff as her team jumped in joy after Odisha Warriors won the women's Hockey India League (HIL) on Sunday evening.

The head coach was high-fiving and embracing her players before having a moment of solitude in the middle, looking down at the blue turf of the Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Munda Astro Turf Hockey Stadium.

It was exactly a year ago on this pitch that the Schopman-coached Indian women's team failed to win a ticket to Paris, missing the Olympics after qualifying for the previous two editions in 2016 and 2021.

The Dutchwoman then had a meltdown where she told the media that she wasn't valued and respected by Hockey India (HI) and that the co...