The India women’s team and Spain men’s team are the latest to qualify for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games hockey tournament. The International Hockey Federation (FIH) confirmed their places following the outcomes of the European Hockey Championships this weekend August (29-30 August).

The Indian women’s team had their place in Rio confirmed when Spain lost out to England in the semi-finals of the European Hockey Championships in London, leaving England to face the Netherlands in the final last Sunday (30 August). With both England (as Great Britain) and the Netherlands already in the line-up to compete in the 2016 Games, it opened the door for India to qualify.

Spain’s men had more luck than their women’s team, guaranteeing their place in the Rio 2016 Games line-up after Ireland lost to the Netherlands in the semi-finals of the European Hockey Championships in London, pitching Netherlands against Germany – both teams having already qualified for the 2016 Olympic Games – in the final.

Spain's men were grateful to the Netherlands for confirming their place at Rio 2016 (Photo: Getty Images/Daniel Berehulak)

The Netherlands men’s team smashed Germany 6-1 in the final last Saturday (29 August) to be crowned European champions, while the England women’s team had a narrow 3-1 victory in a penalty shoot-out after a 2-2 draw in regular time.

With the India women’s team and the Spain men’s team now both confirmed for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, it leaves just two teams in each gender yet to be confirmed this year, at the Oceania Cup (21-25 October) and the Africa Cup for Nations (17-25 October).

For more information on the FIH qualifying process and to track who has qualified, click here for the men and here for the women.

Follow the race to qualify for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games here.

Rio2016.com is not an absolute authority on qualification for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, which is an ongoing process. Final places will only be confirmed in July 2016 (for the Olympic Games) and August 2016 (for the Paralympic Games). The qualification systems are defined by each sport’s respective International Federation and the International Olympic Committee or International Paralympic Committee, and are subject to change. When an athlete or team wins a quota place for their nation, the final decision on whether this ‘slot’ is used and which athletes are sent is taken by the respective National Olympic Committee or National Paralympic Committee (NOC or NPC). Even when athletes win a ‘nominal’ place for themselves, NOCs/NPCs may have to decide who to send if the number of qualified athletes from one country exceeds the quota.