Recent Olympics

Rio 2016, 4th: New Zealand headed into the semifinals full of confidence after an impressive 4-2 win over Australia in the quarterfinals. They failed to fire in a disappointing 3-0 semifinal loss to Great Britain, then missed out on a medal, losing 2-1 to Germany in the bronze playoff. London 2012, 4th: The Black Sticks women were left to rue what might have been after a heartbreaking 3-1 shootout loss to the Netherlands in the semifinals. New Zealand were seven minutes away from heading to the gold medal match, but Dutch great Maartje Paumen equalised to set up a shootout. The gut-wrenching defeat stung New Zealand, who were well-beaten 3-1 by hosts Great Britain for bronze. Outlook for Tokyo: Progressing to the semis for the third Olympics in a row would be a strong achievement for the Black Sticks. They’re capable of beating anyone in the tough world of international hockey, but delivering in crunch games hasn’t been a hallmark.