Yesterday, the State Department put out a communication suggesting that Americans evacuate a number of countries in the Middle East and North Africa because of the current military situation.
Amongst them are Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Qatar, and Lebonon.
But also in the group of nations under the security update is Egypt.
At this moment, Le Federation International de Hockee, the world governing body of the sport of field hockey, is contesting an eight-team last-chance tournament in Ismailia, Egypt. The hosts Pharoahs are there, along with Japan, Pakistan, Malaysia, China, Austria, England, and the United States,
The Wolves, having lost their first two matches in this qualifier, have been mathematically eliminated from advancing to the playoffs for the three precious FIH World Cup berths.
It is therefore understandable that USA Field Hockey made the decision this morning to withdraw from the competition and return to the United States.
The last time an American field hockey team faced a crisis involving arms was when the U.S. women, in their 10,000-mile journey to the 2002 World Cup, were originally scheduled to play a three-game series in India, but border skirmishes sent the U.S. team home. A few weeks later, the series was set for Cannock, England, where the U.S. and India played to two draws and a final victory to win that last World Cup spot.
Thing is, the fate of the U.S. men is beyond unfortunate, since the current conflict was escalated by its own government. Too, the U.S. men’s team, after years of training, had already seen its fate sealed in just two matches. This Deus ex machina ending to the Wolves’ time in Egypt is yet another episode that men’s field hockey in America is going to have in its history.