What is a Free Hit in Field Hockey?

In the game of field hockey, a player is given a free hit when an attacker takes a foul or if a defensive player happens to take an unintentional foul when he or she is not inside of his or her respective circles. Additionally, a free hit is given to a player if a defensemen breaks a rule and takes a foul within five meters of his or her teams circle. This is a type of penalty that is given out by the umpire when a penalty is called on the field.

The free hit itself is usually taken by a player from roughly the spot on the field where the penalty took place. If a team happens to commit another foul before the free hit is taken, then the umpire is allowed to move the spot of the free hit up ten meters closer to the goal of the offending team. However, the shot may not be taken from inside the shooting circle, so the shot is not always moves up the full ten meters.

When a free hit is being executed, only the player that is going to take the hit is allowed to be close to the ball. All of the other players on the field, including members of the non-offending team, must be at least five meters away from the ball.

When the free hit is taken, the umpire must make sure that the ball is standing still, rather than being in motion. The player taking the free hit may then push or hit the ball, but he or she is not allowed to lift the ball midair during the shot. This also means that a player cannot tap the ball slightly or move it in anyway aside from taking the actual free hit. As soon as the ball travels at least one meter, then the other players on the field have the chance to recover it. However, the player who took the initial free hit is not allowed to play the ball or even run to the general vicinity of it until a player from either team touches it first.

Sources:

Planet Field Hockey
Field Hockey Sticks