Tokyo Olympics: Belgium Tops Australia For Hockey Gold

Alexander Hendrickx scored the penalty stroke for the lead in the shootout and Vincent Vanasch got the clinching save as Belgium beat Australia to win men바카라�s field hockey Olympic gold for the first time. Tokyo Olympics | Full Schedule | Sports News

The score was tied 1-all at the end of regulation before Belgium won the shootout 3-2 on Thursday at the Tokyo Games.

Belgium had to wait an extra year to improve on its second-place performance in 2016.

"Standing on the biggest stage on the biggest podium for a small hockey country as Belgium is a crown on all the hard work,바카라� forward Thomas Briels said. 바카라�And a lot of respect to all the teammates 바카라� we work so hard 바카라� and people behind the scenes of hockey in Belgium.바카라�

 Vanasch's final save came against Australian midfielder Jacob Whetton. Vanasch said he was confident, even after a review forced him to get the last save twice.

"I바카라�m like a musician, it바카라�s a rehearsal and then you come to the concert and it comes naturally,바카라� he said. 바카라�That바카라�s how I come on the pitch. I바카라�m composed, but also I trust myself, I trust my reflexes and you can learn that from experience and that바카라�s why today I did something like this.바카라�

Hendrickx scored 14 goals in the tournament 바카라� twice as many as the second-highest scorer.

Australia wished it had taken care of business in regulation.

"It바카라�s a tough way to lose a gold medal,바카라� Kookaburras goalkeeper Andrew Charter said. 바카라�We didn바카라�t want to go to shootout and we had the lion바카라�s share (of possession) at the end. But if you let it go to shootout, it can be a bit of a coin toss sometimes." (AP)