Maddie Hinch has urged hockey to learn from its Olympic experience and use the Commonwealth Games to transform itself.
Hinch was goalkeeping hero of the penalty shootout when Britain’s golden girls won the Rio Olympics final in 2016. It was an open goal for the sport to significantly raise its profile but Hinch believes it missed the target.“After Rio I thought it would kick on more, but it didn’t,” she said. “There was a window of opportunity and we missed it.
"We probably didn’t capitalise on the players and the fact people were wanting to know our stories. I don’t think we put ourselves out there enough."
The final, in which Britain beat the Netherlands in a shootout with Hinch saving all four Dutch penalties, was watched by 9.7million on the BBC.
It brought fame to Hinch and others, including Question of Sport’s Sam Quek, but did little to raise the overall profile of the sport.
“The league system hasn’t helped in that we’ve continued to do it the way we’ve always done it,” said Hinch. “We should have rejigged things.
“We needed to take a bit of a gamble considering we had done the hardest part getting everybody’s attention, which was a big, big tick.
“We would have filled stands in the years after Rio, we really would. Look at the home World Cup that followed two years later. Sold out 10,000 crowds. That hadn’t happened before."
Hinch, 33, says all is not lost as the Commonwealth Games on home turf, complete with wall-to-wall BBC coverage, offers the sport another shot in the limelight.
England women, who have three times reached the final, open their campaign against Ghana tomorrow.
“The Commonwealths give us another opportunity,” said Hinch. “I just hope there can be another fairy tale ending like there was in Rio and we again get our chance in the spotlight.
“The legacy our gold medal team want to leave is of a sport going in an upwards direction. But it needs everyone doing their bit. If we're not willing to change hockey will just stay where it is, which would be a real shame."
In contrast to the sport’s modest profile Hinch had her name up in lights for years after Rio and it left her with a feeling of guilt.
“I created a story in my head that my team mates hated the attention I got, though no-one ever articulated it,” she said.
“I felt I had to be perfect as an athlete and perfect in every way because after that final that was how I was depicted - as the perfect athlete. It was rubbish. I am far from that.
“Fortunately, the year-long delay to the Tokyo Olympics allowed me the time to reset and I’m now in a much better place.
“But I still expect a lot of myself. As soon as I stop caring about that stuff it’s time for me to call it a day."
To find out more about Maddie Hinch, head to her Red Bull athlete profile page: https://www.redbull.com/gb-en/athlete/maddie-hinch
