2024-04-02 08:24:43
New Delhi: Young midfielder Hardik Singh and defender Salima Tete were given the Hockey India Balbir Singh Sr. Award for the best player of the year 2023, while the Lifetime Achievement Award in the name of Major Dhyan Chand went to his son Ashok Kumar. Hardik, who also won the FIH Player of the Year award last year, defeated senior players like PR Sreejesh and Harmanpreet Singh in the race for the award. 25-year-old Hardik, who was a member of the bronze medal-winning Indian team of Tokyo Olympics, has played more than a hundred international matches. After winning the award, he said, ‘It is a great achievement to be nominated with such great players. The award will inspire me to play better further.
Tete from Simdega district of Jharkhand was part of the Indian women’s team that finished fourth in the Tokyo Olympics. She defeated her captain and Savita Punia, who won the FIH Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year award, in the race for the award. The best player of the year was given a prize of Rs 25 lakh and a citation. At the Hockey India annual awards ceremony held here, PR Sreejesh received the best goalkeeper of the year 2023 and Indian men’s hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh received the best defender award. Harmanpreet said on this occasion, ‘Awards inspire us to play well. This also increases healthy competition in the team which is good for hockey.
Hardik also won the Best Midfielder award and Abhishek got the Best Forward award. The Best Emerging Under-21 Player award was given to Deepika Soreng in the women’s category and Arijit Singh Hundal in the men’s category. His son Ashok Kumar, who won the Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Award and a member of the 1975 World Cup-winning team, said, ‘We are honored to participate in the Paris Olympics this time, continuing the tradition of great players like Sardar Balbir Singh, Udham Singh, Captain Roop Singh, KD Singh Babu. Have to win gold medal.
India won the bronze medal in the Tokyo Olympics after a wait of 41 years. The eight-time Olympic gold medalist Indian team last won Olympic gold in 1980 in Moscow. Ashok Kumar said, ‘Nothing is impossible for players. You have to demonstrate your skills while controlling the pressure. Now the players have excellent coaches, infrastructure and facilities. We hope that this team will bring back the old glory of Indian hockey by winning gold in Paris.
Along with this, the 2016 Junior Men’s Hockey World Cup winning team in Lucknow, Hangzhou Asian Games 2023 gold medal winning men’s team and bronze medal winning women’s team, 2023 Junior Asia Cup winning men’s team in Oman, Junior Asia Cup winning team in Japan The women’s team, the women’s and men’s teams that won gold medals at Asia Hockey 5 in Oman, the men’s team that won the Asian Champions Trophy 2023 in Chennai, the women’s teams that won the Women’s Asian Champions Trophy 2023 in Ranchi were also honored with cash prizes and citations. . On this occasion, former Olympians Harbinder Singh, Zafar Iqbal, Ajit Pal Singh, Jagbir Singh, Jugraj Singh, Hockey India General Secretary Bholanath Singh and Odisha Government Sports Secretary Vinil Krishna were present.