RIO DE JANEIRO -- Field hockey has not been one of the most successful Olympic sports for the United States. Neither the men nor the women have ever won a medal, unless the Olympics were held in Los Angeles. The men won their only bronze in 1932, and the women won their only bronze in 1984. It was difficult enough that I recall tales from the 1996 Olympic of players having to beat snakes with their sticks while practicing at the training center.The women finished dead last at the 2012 Olympics in London after finishing eighth in 2008. They did not compete in the two Olympics previous to that.The sport is improving, however, at least on the womens side. The American women won the championship at last summers Pan Am Games in Toronto by beating rival Argentina. They finished third in the Champions Trophy event in London this summer (with Argentina winning). They have risen to No. 5 in the world rankings. They showed they are a force to be reckoned with here by beating world No. 2-ranked Argentina 2-1 on Saturday in their opening Pool B game of these Olympics.How have they gotten better? Part of it is drawing determination from the poor London 2012 showing. Much of it also is Craig Parnham, who played for Great Britain in two Olympics and took over as coach after the London Games.Hes great. The entire coaching staff is great, goalkeeper Jackie Briggs said. Craig, [assistant coach] Janneke Schopman and our trainer, they work so well together, and they balance each other out. They give us a lot of confidence and let us set the standard. And thats what we have to live up to.More weight drills, conditioning and scientific training have made a difference as well. Players say everything is closely tracked and monitored. Briggs said if they were lifting at 100 percent before, they are at 110 percent now.We really had to grind it out it, she said. It wasnt easy. It was just work, work, work. We just keep going.There wasnt a large crowd for Saturdays game, and not surprisingly, most of the fans were for neighboring country Argentina. When the small group of American fans cheered U-S-A! U-S-A! the Argentinians booed just as loudly, if not more so.The U.S. and Argentina have a fierce rivalry. They have played for the gold medal at every Pan Am Games competition except 1991. Argentina also won every time until 2011, when the U.S. finally beat them. The U.S. came through again last summer.It is a huge rivalry, Briggs said. Theyre an amazing team, and they always give us a great game. We know them inside and out because we play them pretty frequently. They didnt have Carla Rebecchi at Pan Ams, so that hurt them a little bit. Shes back here, so that made them better here. We tried to deny her the ball a little bit. We were outstanding with our one-to-one defense and coverage all over the field.Playing on a blue turf field that made the game seem as if it were at Boise State, the two teams squandered several scoring opportunities in the first two periods and were tied 0-0 at halftime. Argentina took an apparent 1-0 lead early in the third period, but that goal was taken away when a referee video review ruled that the shot should not count. The U.S. responded quickly, with a goal from Katie Reinbrecht in the 35th minute to take a 1-0 lead, then extended it to 2-0 with a goal by Michelle Kasold on a penalty corner.Argentina scored to make it close with barely over three minutes left, but the U.S. held firm for the victory.We had to defend well, Parnham said. We did that, and that gave us a nice platform to build off. Even before halftime, I thought we created some really good opportunities to score, and that continued into the second half.The schedule doesnt get a lot easier for the U.S., which faces No. 3 Australia on Monday in its next Pool B game. The Netherlands, the gold medal team in 2008 and 2012 and currently ranked No. 1, is in Pool A. The top four teams in each pool advance to the quarterfinals.With the way the U.S. has improved since London, dont be surprised to see the Americans going very deep and perhaps up on the podium for the first time in 32 years -- even though these Olympics arent in Los Angeles. Vans Shoes Uk Sale . -- Jimmie Johnson held off a teammate, passed a pair of Hall of Famers, and dominated once more at Dover. Vans Shoes Uk Cheap . 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