The Koreans hockey players are a quiet lot. They do not believe in unnecessary flamboyance and hype. But when it comes to playing the game, they leave nothing to chance and will give everything they have to make an impression on the field.

The Koreans showed their commitment and resolve with a fantastic fourth place finish at the Champions Trophy in Kuala Lumpur recently. They defeated the much-fancied Dutch and Australian teams and drew with Spain at the annual showpiece event of the international hockey calendar. Quite a comeback considering that they were drubbed by India in the final of the Asia Cup in Chennai in August.

You Hyo-sik (Bangalore Hi-Fliers), Kim Chul (Orissa Steelers) and Kang Moon-kweon (Maratha Warriors) are three of the top Korean players and they are in Chandigarh to play in the Premier Hockey League.

"The Champions Trophy was a tough tournament. No doubt about it. But the wins against Australia and the Netherlands did a lot of good for us and has boosted our confidence," the trio said. "Against the Dutch, the going was tough in the beginning. But when we got four goals in the last 10 minutes, our opponents were shaken up and we were able to pull of the win."

Now, the Doha Asian Games gold medalists are gearing up for bigger challenges. Having already qualified for the Beijing Olympic Games, Korea are keen on proving their mettle once again at the international stage. The Korean national team will have intensive coaching camps at the Taereung Sports Centre in Seoul in preparation for the Olympics. "We are very particular about physical fitness and there will be a lot of importance on that during the camp in Seoul. After the PHL, we are going straight to the Seoul camp," said You Hyo-sik.

Their speed is there for all to see in matches and that could be attributed to very high levels of fitness.

At the Olympics, what are they hoping to achieve? "The gold medal, of course," Chul said with a hearty laugh.

"We will give it a shot to bring back honour for our country."

On a more serious note, Chul said: "The gap between the big guns like Australia, the Netherlands, Germany and teams like ours has reduced. We would say the gap is very narrow. The advantage top nations have is better technology.

"In order to gain experience in playing the big teams, the Korean federation has planned several foreign tours to the Netherlands, Australia and Spain before the Olympics. Playing these guys is the only way we can improve," he added.

Cho Myung-jun, the Korean national coach, commands a lot of respect from the players. The players gave evidence of the fact that he is very professional and meticulous with his planning in the run-up to Beijing. "Our coach is very intelligent. The Dutch for example use GPS systems to monitor a player's performance but our coach keeps track of the players mentally," Kang said.

"Our previous coach Kim Sang-ryul was with the national team for more than 10 years. He has done a great job and brought Korean hockey to where it is today. He has laid a great foundation. We really miss him. But now, our present coach is taking us to the next level and we are determined to do well," Kang added.

Playing in the PHL too has come as a whole new experience. This is the first time the Koreans have played in a domestic tournament in India and they are thoroughly enjoying it. "Naturally, the standard is not international but players like Dilip Tirkey, Prabhjot Singh, Arjun Halappa and Viren Rasquinha are very good. It has been a good experience for us to visit India and play," Chul signed off.