Germany entered the Olympic women’s field hockey final here yesterday by defeating China 4-3 in the penalty shootout after both teams were locked goalless at the end of extra-time.
German goalkeeper Louisa Walter saved two strokes from Gao Lihua and Zhou Wanfeng to give her side victory even as teammate Franziska Gude missed her penalty.
Germany, who finished seventh at the Sydney Olympics four years ago, clash with the Netherlands in Thursday’s gold medal match.
The Dutch secured a 4-2 verdict against world champions Argentina in another tie-breaker after both teams were tied 2-2 at the end of extra-time.
China, seeking their first Olympic final after taking fifth place at Sydney, paid the price for wasting five penalty corners in the second-half and another five in the opening seven-and-a-half minutes of extra-time.
The Germans defended for a major part of the match but held their nerves better in the penalty shoot-out to make the final.
“It was not a pleasant match to watch from the bench, but the important thing is that we are in the final,” said German coach Markus Weise.
“We really have to thank Louisa for taking us to the final. My heart was in my mouth when the tie-breaker started, but she really made us proud.”
China’s Korean coach Kim Changback said the game was lost before the shoot-out.
“We did everything but score and that is not what one expects in an Olympic semifinal,” said Kim, who uses a translater to communicate with his wards during the match.
“The girls looked nervous going into the tie-breaker and my worst fears came true.
China were virtually unknown in women’s hockey till the 1990s till they grabbed the limelight by winning both the Champions Trophy and the Asian Games title in 2002.
Earlier, the Netherlands buried the ghosts of the last World Cup by defeating world champions Argentina 6-4 after the tie-breaker.
Dutch goalkeeper Clarinda Sinnige saved two penalty strokes in the tie-breaker to lead her team to victory after both teams were tied 2-2 in regulation time and failed to break the deadlock in extra-time.
The absorbing semifinal followed exactly the same pattern of the 2002 World Cup final between the two teams in Australia which Argentina won on strokes after finishing 2-2 in extra-time.
Australia Sure of Historic Medal
• For Australia, it was a dream come true. For Japan, it was a nightmare.
Australia pulled off their biggest baseball win ever, beating Japan 1-0 in their Olympic semi-final on Tuesday, assuring themselves of their first medal in the sport.
Australia scored thanks to a two-out single from Brendan Kingman that plated a runner in the sixth inning. The Aussies then called on reliever Jeff Williams, who plays in Japan for the Hanshin Tigers, to squash any hopes of a Japanese rally.
Japanese ace Daisuke Matsuzaka tossed a gem of a game for Japan, striking out 13 batters over seven and two-thirds innings.
Japan came into Athens with high hopes of a gold after they suffered the embarrassment of losing out on a medal in Sydney when they were defeated by arch rival South Korea.
Japan brought a squad they dubbed their “Dream Team” to Athens, made up completely of the best of their pro league. Leaving the field, several Japanese players said they felt crushed by the loss.
