PUNE: Dutch hockey legend Floris Jan Bovelander can never fall short of finding winning memories to talk about. Be it his brace against Pakistan that won his team the 1990 World Cup final in Lahore or two penalty corners to beat Spain in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics final, he has enough to tell his grandchildren. Yet, the Dutch hockey legend picks his rare miss as one of the unforgettable moments of his playing career.
“If I look back, I feel I would remember the penalty stroke that I missed against Pakistan in the 1994 World Cup final in Sydney. We lost that match and the missed strike taught me a lot of things. It taught me never to take your opponent lightly, as we did since we had defeated them four years ago. The miss also prepared me mentally for the 1996 Olympics. I feel I could score in the final because I was not taking my opponents (Spain) lightly then,” Bovelander, 58, told TOI on Thursday.
