Indian participant Hardik Singh throughout a follow session on January 17, 2023.
| Photo Credit: PTI
Indian males’s hockey workforce midfielder Hardik Singh and ladies’s facet captain Savita on Tuesday received the FIH Player of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year (girls) awards respectively.
The awards had been declared following a vote by an skilled panel, National Associations — represented by their respective nationwide groups’ captains and coaches, followers and media.
With 114 caps to his title, Hardik is the subsequent large factor in Indian hockey. He rightly showcased that, when he turned an important cog in India’s bronze-medal win on the 2020 Olympics and his efficiency have gone from energy to energy since then.
This is Hardik’s second large award this yr as he was additionally conferred the Hockey India Balbir Singh Sr Award for Player of the Year 2022.
With his flamboyance in the midfield, he has turn out to be one of many pivotal members of the Indian workforce in current years.
“When you’ve got a great team, they make your game better and life easier. I am grateful for all those who have voted for me and thankful to the entire team and Hockey India for helping me reach this stage,” stated the present India vice-captain.
As for Savita, that is her third consecutive FIH Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year award, having received the popularity in 2021 and 2022.
The Indian custodian has been in prolific kind all through 2023. Starting from the Test matches in Australia to the Hangzhou Asian Games, Savita has been on prime of her sport.
The 33-year-old helped India emerge because the champions of the Asian Champions Trophy held in October in India. She will likely be seeking to assist India qualify for the Paris Olympics with a prime three end on the upcoming FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier in Ranchi in January subsequent yr.
“Thankful to all my teammates and support staff who have helped me grow as an individual. This award will motivate me to work harder and get more success for our country. Lastly, thankful to all those who voted for me,” she stated.
Xan de Waard of the Netherlands has been elected as 2023 FIH Player of the Year in the ladies’s class.
Dutch goalkeeper Pirmin Blaak received the FIH Goalkeeper of the Year awards amongst males, whereas the awards for FIH Rising Stars went to Teresa Lima (Spain) and Gaspard Xavier (France).
China girls’s head coach Alyson Annan and Germany males’s head coach André Henning received the FIH Coaches of the Year awards, whereas Ayanna McClean (Trinidad-and-Tobago) and Ben Göntgen (Germany) had been awarded with the FIH Umpires of the Year recognitions.
