KUALA LUMPUR: The men want nothing but gold, while the women will gladly accept "fifth spot" in the Hangzhou hockey tournament beginning on Sept 24.
And both the targets are realistically sound, as the men have shown great form at the recent Asian Champions Trophy in Chennai, while the women will find it impossible to beat South Korea or India to book their semi-final spot.
The Malaysian men are in Group B with Indonesia, Thailand, Oman, China, South Korea. And topping the group is their first mission.
"Our target is gold, and we know that we can achieve it," said coach A. Arul Selvaraj.
Not only the Malaysian Hockey Confederation and Arul want the Malaysian hockey team to march at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics, but also all 18 of his players selected for the Asian Games.
"Gold is a collective target that everybody has agreed upon and trained for. On a personal note, I want to attend the Paris Olympics with the Malaysian team," said Arul who had played at the World Cup, but never the Olympics for Malaysia.
Women's coach Nasihin Nubli said it's mandatory to beat Singapore and Hong Kong at the group stage, but India and South Korea are way ahead of his players.
"I'm not throwing in the towel before playing any matches, but that's the reality. India are seventh in the world, while South Korea 12th and Malaysia 19th.
"We play Korea in our final group match, and that is the game we need to bring out our best and try for a win if we want to achieve our semis dream," said Nasihin.
Nasihin, a former national goalkeeper, placed his trust in two new players for Hangzhou.
"Goalkeeper Nur Hazlinda (Zainal) and (Siti Nur) Irdina have zero caps and will represent Malaysia for the first time at senior level. Irdiana is 19, and the target is to break into the semi-finals in the next Asian Games with my current young set of players among the 18 for Hangzhou," said Nasihin.
MEN:
Goalkeepers: Hafizuddin Othman, Zaini Mat Deris;
Defenders: Razie Rahim, Marhan Jalil, Najmi Farizan Jazlan, Aminuddin Zain, Amirul Hamizan, Muhajir Abdu Rauf, Ramadan Rosli.
Midfielders: Faiz Helmi Jali, Meor Azuan Hassan, Nik Aiman Rozemi, Azrai Aizad Kamal, Khaliq Hamirin;
Strikers: Shello Silverius, Firhan Ashaari, Faizal Saari, Ashran Hamsani.
WOMEN:
Goalkeepers: Mashitah Abdul Jalil, Nur Hazlinda Zainal
Defenders: Nuraini Abdul Rashid, Raja Norsharina Shabuddin, Khairunnisa Ayuni, Dayang Nuramirah, Nurul Fatin Fatiah.
Midfielders: Juliani Din, Wan Norfaiezah Saiuti, Nurmaizatul Hanim Syafi, Nur Insyirah Effarizal, Siti Nur Irdina;
Strikers: Fatin Shafika Sukri, Hanis Nadiah Onn, Nuramirah Shakirah Zulkifli, Siti Zulaikha Hussain, Siti Nur Arfah, Nur Afiqah Syahzani Azhar.