"It has been a seven-year struggle to get to these Games," Wayne Fernandes told Field Hockey Canada. "Qualifying for Beijing is the achievement of a lifetime."
Fernandes, who says he has dreamed of going to the Olympics since the age of 10, was one of the 18 athletes named to the final roster that includes a mix of veterans and newcomers. The squad is ranked 15th in the world.
Canada did not qualify for the 2004 Olympic Games in Sydney.
Sandison has been a member of the national team since 2002. In Beijing, he will play with three metal plates inserted in a jaw that he broke three months ago. He wears a mask for protection.
"I want these Games to be the peak of my career. I want to go to Beijing and leave without any regrets," he told the CBC.
The team begins a week of training starting this Friday in Vancouver. They will reconvene for another training camp from July 17-23 in Victoria.
Meanwhile, Canada will open the Olympic tournament against Australia, the second-ranked nation in the world, on Aug. 12.
Canada is scheduled to play Pakistan, the Netherlands, Great Britain and South Africa.
Canada's best Olympic placing in men's field hockey was 10th in 2000, 1984 and 1976.
