At the beginning of the Tokyo Olympics, India was ranked number 8 in the world and was not considered a serious contender. India had a historic showing under his coaching, reaching the semifinals for the first time. They had a disastrous start to the tournament, losing in succession to the Netherlands (1 - 5), Germany (0 - 2) and Great Britain (1 - 4) in the group stage. However, India beat Ireland 1 - 0 and South Africa 4 - 3 to qualify for the quarterfinals.[3] There, they stunned then World no. 3 Australia 1 - 0, to advance to the semifinal stage for the first time in history. However, India lost to World no. 2 Argentina 1 - 2 in the semifinal and had to settle to competing for bronze.[4][5] India lost the bronze medal match narrowly to Great Britain 3 - 4, and finished fourth. Marijne is widely credited for the Indian team's turnaround after decades of dismal showings.[6][7]
On 6 August 2021, after India's loss to Great Britain, Marijne announced that he would retire as the head coach of the India women's team to spend more time with his family.[7][8][9][10]
