- Nominees announced for three categories – Player of the Year (men and women); Goalkeeper of the Year (men and women); Rising Star of the Year (men and women)
- Voting closes at midnight on 14 January 2018
- Further details on all nominees will appear on the FIH website in coming weeks
Lausanne,1 December 2017: Voting has now opened for this year’s International Hockey Federation (FIH) Hockey Stars Awards, celebrating the athletes, coaches and umpires who have lit up the world of hockey this year.
Winners in six of the 10 categories will be decided by the combined results of an online vote that is open to the public and a peer vote from international athletes.
Hockey fans are invited to cast their vote in the following categories: Player of the Year (men and women); Goalkeeper of the Year (men and women) and Rising Star of the Year (men and women). The public can vote for their favourite hockey players here.
The vote closes at midnight (Central European Time) 14 January 2018.
There will also be awards for the mens’ and women’s Coach of the Year and the men’s and women’s Umpire of the Year. Coach of the Year nominees are voted for by the international coaches and the coaches from the High Performance Panel, while Umpire of the Year Awards are decided by an international panel of umpires and technical officials, as well as athletes.
Five male and five female nominees have been selected for each award. The Player, Goalkeeper and Rising Star awards were selected by a panel consisting of the FIH Athletes’ Committee, Continental Federations, coaches and media. All awards are based on performance at international events during the 2017 season, as well as the player’s overall contribution to the sport.
Here are the nominations in alphabetical order.
PLAYER OF THE YEAR NOMINATIONS:
Women: Alex Danson (ENG & GBR); Melissa Gonzalez (USA); Stacey Michelsen (NZL); Delfina Merino (ARG); Lidewij Welten (NED)
Men: Billy Bakker (NED); Mats Grambusch (GER); Gonzalo Peillat (ARG); Mirco Pruyser (NED); Arthur Van Doren (BEL)
GOALKEEPER OF THE YEAR NOMINATIONS:
Women: Jackie Briggs (USA); Aisling D’Hooghe (BEL); Maddie Hinch (ENG & GBR); Li Dongxaio (CHN); Anne Veenendaal (NED)
Men: Quico Cortes (ESP); David Harte (IRE); George Pinner (Eng & GBR); Vincent Vanasch (BEL); Juan Vivaldi (ARG)
RISING STAR OF THE YEAR NOMINATIONS (Players aged 23 and under)
Women: Maria Granatto (ARG); Nike Lorenz (GER); Frederique Matla (NED); Laura Nunnink (NED); Xan de Waard (NED)
Men: Thierry Brinkman (NED); Jorrit Croon (NED); Timm Herzbruch (GER); Arthur Van Doren (BEL); Victor Wegnez (BEL)
For more information about the FIH Hockey Stars Awards, including previous award winners, clickhere.
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