Newly appointed Bangladesh Under-21 hockey coach Siegfried Gottlieb Aikman on Sunday urged his charges to deliver a strong performance in the 14th edition of the Men鈥檚 FIH Hockey Junior World Cup, to be held in Tamil Nadu, India, later this year.
鈥楲ook at the group; our opponents are stronger. So, the target is to give them a tough time, to be realistic,鈥� said Aikman, who signed a four-month contract with the Bangladesh Hockey Federation on Friday.
The 66-year-old Aikman鈥檚 appointment officially starts on September 1, and his tenure with the BHF will conclude after the Junior World Cup, which will be played from November 28 to December 10.
鈥榃e contracted him until the end of the World Cup. He will assume formal charge on September 1, and his contract will end after the World Cup,鈥� stated BHF general secretary, Lt Col (rtd) Riazul Hasan, during the unveiling of the Dutchman at the Maulana Bhashani National Hockey Stadium.
Aikman, who led Japan to win gold at the Asian Games in 2018 and finish 11th at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020, previously served as the coach of the Oman national team before joining Bangladesh. He also worked with Pakistan in 2020-2021.
The Dutch coach said he studied the standards, facilities, and environment of Bangladesh hockey before signing the deal with BHF.
鈥業 did homework before coming here鈥� They have a very skilled and talented group of players, but they were not well-prepared to play in the World Cup鈥� There were also areas to improve and to compete on the highest performance level...I aim to elevate them from local to international level. They are physically strong, but technically lacking, with poor fitness and stamina,鈥� explained the coach.
The BHF are set to arrange 10 practice matches鈥攆our in Pakistan in September and six in Europe in October鈥攂efore Bangladesh departs for the World Cup.
Bangladesh are pitted in Group F with 1997 champions Australia, France, and South Korea in their inaugural campaign of the 24-team competition.
After the group stage, the eight group winners and the two best second-placed teams will advance to the quarter-finals.
The other four second-placed teams and the four best third-ranked teams will play in playoffs for 9th to 16th places, while the remaining teams will compete for positions from 17th to 24th.
The Bangladesh team began their training camp with 40 players, including 16 from the squad that played in Oman for qualification, under the guidance of two local coaches, Moshiur Rahman Biplob and Mohammad Ashikuzzaman, in July.
The two local coaches will continue working, focusing on fitness under Aikman鈥檚 instructions.
The 39 players are selected from BKSP, while Nazmush Sabit Mahmud is the only player from Ostad Fazlu Hockey Academy.
Bangladesh secured their first appearance in the Junior World Cup after finishing fifth under Moududur Rahman Shuvo鈥檚 management at the Men鈥檚 Hockey Junior Asia Cup in Oman in December 2024.
