Manpreet Singh, Rani Rampal in the fray as Hockey India Annual Award nominations for 2019 announced
The much-awaited nomination list for the third edition of Hockey India's Annual Awards was announced on Tuesday.
The awards, for the year 2019, are in recognition of excellence in performance and overall contribution to the game of hockey. The winners of the awards which carry total prize money of ₹1.30 crores along with a trophy will be announced on March 8 in Delhi.
The nominees for the Hockey India Dhruv Batra Player of the Year (Male) award include defender and star drag-flicker Harmanpreet Singh, opportunistic striker Mandeep Singh, captain Manpreet Singh and defender Surender Kumar.
The winners of Hockey India Dhruv Batra Player of the Year award will receive ₹25 lakhs and a trophy and the nominees in the female category are ace defender Deep Grace Ekka, defender and champion drag-flicker Gurjit Kaur, talismanic skipper Rani Rampal, and veteran goalkeeper Savita Punia.
The Hockey India Jugraj Singh Upcoming Player of the Year which is a men's U-21 category award has budding stars Dilpreet Singh, Gursahibjit Singh, Mandeep Mor, and Vivek Sagar Prasad in the fray.
The nominees for the Hockey India Asunta Lakra Upcoming Player of the Year 2019 for the U-21 women include Lalremsiami, Sharmila Devi, and Salima Tete.
The upcoming star awards for both and women carry a cash prize of ₹10 lakhs each along with a trophy for the winners.
The nominations for the Hockey India Dhanraj Pillay Award for Forward of the Year 2019 have also been announced. Lalit Kumar Upadhyaya and Mandeep Singh have been nominated from the men's team while Rani Rampal and Navneet Kaur are the nominees from the Indian eves camp.
The nominees for the Hockey India Ajit Pal Singh Award for Midfielder of the Year 2019 include young Vivek Sagar Prasad and his idol Manpreet Singh along while Monika and Neha Goyal from the Indian women's team.
The Hockey India Pargat Singh Award for Defender of the Year 2019 include Harmanpreet Singh, Surender Kumar, and Varun Kumar from the men's squad and Deep Grace Ekka from the women's side.
The Hockey India Baljit Singh Award for Goalkeeper of the Year 2019 awards will witness some stiff competition between veterans PR Sreejesh, Savita Punia, young Krishan Pathak and Rajani Etimarpu.
The Hockey India Jaman Lal Sharma Award for Invaluable Contribution 2019 and the Hockey India President’s Award for Outstanding Achievement 2019 will also be announced on Sunday.
The awards for the best forward, defender, midfielder, and goalkeeper carry a cash award of ₹5 lakhs each.
The Hockey India Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award 2019 which carries a cash prize of ₹30 lakhs will also be a highlight of the event.