Sunelita Toppo (born 11 April 2007)[1] is an Indian field hockey player who plays as a forward for the national team.[2] She made her senior debut at the Pro League against China in Bhubaneswar in February 2024.[3]

Personal life

Sunelita hails from Kukuda village[4] in Sundergarh district in Odisha.[5]  Her father Suresh Toppo is a farmer and her mother, Nelisunita Toppo,[6] is a housewife.[7] She says, she is inspired by her aunt Anupa Barla, who also played Junior World Cup for India.[8] She is a product of the Sports Authority of India Training Centre, Sundergarh, which is considered as a cradle of budding hockey stars in India.[4] Initially, she started to play hockey at the age of 8, with bamboo sticks.[9]

Career

Sunelita represented Odisha in the National Games at Gujarat in 2022 and caught the eye of the selectors after an impressive performance. She made her junior India debut in February 2023 during the four-match South Africa tour[10] and within a year she got the senior cap. She started as a mid-fielder but soon switched to forward line.[11] Later in June 2023, she was part of the Indian junior team that won the Junior Asia Cup in Japan.[10][12][13] She was also part of the junior India team that played the 4-nation invitational tournament in Düsseldorf, Germany in August 2023 and the Women's hockey Junior World Cup in Santiago, Chile in December 2023.[10][14]

References

  1. ^ "Sunelita Toppo Profile". Hockey India. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  2. ^ "Hockey: In Kukuda's Sunelita Toppo and Sonepat's Sakshi Rana, two teenage hopes for India's future". The Indian Express. 22 February 2025. Retrieved 22 February 2025.
  3. ^ PTI (2 May 2024). "Change of guard in women's hockey team: Salima replaces Savita as skipper". ThePrint. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Sunelita Toppo: Another addition to Sudargarh's rich hockey tradition". Khel Now. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  5. ^ "Sunelita a bright spot as India take on formidable Aussies". The Times of India. 7 February 2024. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  6. ^ "Welcome :: Student Academic Management System (SAMS)". samsodisha.gov.in. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  7. ^ ""I want to play in the Olympics and win Gold medal for my country," says 16-year-old Sunelita Toppo after getting picked for Hockey India Senior Women National Coaching Camp". Hockey India. 12 April 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  8. ^ "Following her aunt's footsteps, Sunelita Toppo hopes to make it big in Indian hockey". Stick2Hockey. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  9. ^ "Sunelita Toppo : వెదురు కర్రలతో హాకీ ఆడా". EENADU (in Telugu). Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  10. ^ a b c "Orisports.com". www.orisports.com. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  11. ^ "'Great opportunity to represent India on the big stage,' says India women's junior forward Sunelita Toppo". thebridge.in. 27 November 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  12. ^ PTI (10 June 2023). "Junior India Women Hockey's Talented Forward Sunelita Toppo Named In Asian Games Core Group". www.outlookindia.com. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  13. ^ "Hockey, Women's Junior Asia Cup: India finish group stage unbeaten to qualify for semis". Scroll.in. 8 June 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  14. ^ Scroll Staff (10 December 2023). "FIH Hockey Women's Junior World Cup: India finish ninth after penalty shoot-out win over USA". Scroll.in. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
Allikas: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunelita_Toppo
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