New Delhi | Set for an Olympic return after 100 years, the lesser known sport of lacrosse got acknowledgement from Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday as he felicitated the Indian men's and women's teams for their gold-winning show at a recent Asian meet and urged them to eye 2028 Los Angeles Games qualification.
Lacrosse is a native American team sport in which a long-handled stick with a netted head is used to catch, pass and throw a rubber ball into the rival goal.
It made its Olympic debut as a medal event in 1904 and featured again four years later before becoming a demonstration discipline in 1928, 1932 and 1948. Eventually dropped from the roster, the sport will return to the Games in the upcoming Los Angeles edition.
"Lacrosse is an upcoming big sport for India. This was your first major international exposure and you have already brought home medals. Now the focus should be on working harder, gaining more exposure and making the country proud by aiming for qualification at LA 2028," Mandaviya told the two teams.
India delivered a dominant performance at the Asian Lacrosse Games held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in February, securing gold medals in both the men's and women's events in the six-a-side format, which will be used in Los Angeles as well.
Indian men and women defeated Iraq and Pakistan respectively in their final matches.
The Indian women's Lacrosse team made its international debut only in 2024, while the men's team followed them last year 2025.
The two teams feature athletes from all part of the coutry, including Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Haryana, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh.
The Asian Lacrosse Games, organised under the Asia-Pacific Lacrosse Union, are part of a broader effort to develop competitive pathways in the region.
India's next major assignments include the third Asian Lacrosse Games in Chengdu, China, in April, and the Asia-Pacific Sixes Lacrosse Championships in Australia this October, which will serve as a qualification pathway for LA 2028.
Approximately 100 lacrosse teams from around the world are expected to enter the qualification pathway, from where six men's and six women's teams will earn the right to compete in the 2028 Games.
Continental championships will take place from September to December this year.
The four championships – African, Asia-Pacific, European and Pan-American – will advance teams to the 2027 World Lacrosse Sixes Championships, featuring parallel competition for the top 16 men's and top 16 women's teams.
