- China took on Belgium in the semi-finals of the Olympic women’s hockey
- The teams were tied at 1-1 and could not be separated at the end of regular time.
- After the whistle blew, a Chinese player hit the ball to an opponent
The Olympic women’s hockey semi-final between China and Belgium descended into chaos on Wednesday when a Chinese player hit the ball at an opponent after regulation time.
The two teams faced each other in the last four rounds in Paris, with both countries chasing their first gold medal at the event.
It was a fierce battle and the teams were level (1-1) when referee Amber Church blew her whistle to signal the end of regulation time and the subsequent penalty shootout.
However, after the whistle blew, Chinese midfielder Fan Yunxia hit the ball in frustration towards Belgian star player Delphine-Daphne Marien, which resulted in shocking scenes.
The impact of the ball caused Marien to fall to the field in pain. The incident led to a major fight in which several Belgian players confronted Yunxia, who was booed by the crowd.
The Olympic women’s hockey semi-final between China and Belgium descended into chaos on Wednesday when a Chinese player hit the ball at an opponent after a final sprint.
After the whistle blew, Fan Yunxia hit the ball to Belgium’s Delphine-Daphne Marien
The Belgian players were furious with Yunxia and confronted the Chinese midfielder
Marien (bottom left) was writhing on the ground in pain after being beaten by Yunxia
One of them was Judith Vandermeiren who pushed Yunxia when she tried to defend her teammate.
Vandermeiren was given a yellow card and a 10-minute suspension for her actions, but the 29-year-old attempted to defend her position to Church.
She was heard saying: “I’m protecting my teammate. You can’t do that (yellow card),” before walking off the pitch shaking her head.
Yunxia was also shown a yellow card, but that did not stop the Chinese coaching staff from protesting the decision on the field.
China won the penalty shootout 3-2, when their goalkeeper Ye Jiao saved Marien’s last penalty.
“We did what we had to do. These games are to be won. It doesn’t have to be pretty,” China head coach Alyson Annan said after the match.
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Yunxia was shown a yellow card by referee Amber Church, as was Belgian Judith Vandermeiren
China advanced to the gold medal match on penalties thanks to a 3-2 victory
“We’ve also practiced shootouts at every practice for the past year and a half. At every practice. We haven’t missed a single practice. That paid off tonight.
“You can’t leave anything on the pitch. You have to give everything. They did that. We’re in the final.”
Meanwhile, Vandermeiren explained the heartbreak felt by the Belgian squad when she added: ‘It’s a difficult one to digest. I think we were very close today.’
China advances to the gold medal match, where they will face the Netherlands, who defeated Argentina 3-0 in the other Olympic semi-final.