Aside from their daily training regimen, the UK team currently training for the Olympic men's hockey qualifying tournament in Chile have been told to practice on Nintendo Wii sports games to improve the hockey abilities.

EADT tells us that England hockey uses the Wii improve hand-eye coordination, peripheral vision and awareness. 

“As well as being fun and providing some time off the pitch, the training on the Wii has really improved my performance during games," says goalkeeper George Pinner. “We are made to play games like tennis and boxing with eye patches on to concentrate on working each eye individually."

David Faulker, a spokesperson for England Hockey, said: “Nintendo Wii is one of the many resources we are looking at to improve reaction and speed for goalkeepers.”

If they do make it to the 2008 Beijing games next year, they could further improve on their skills by picking up a Vii console.

[Thanks, Mr. Ross]