Yendala Soundarya and Etimarpu Rajani scripted history by becoming the first-ever women hockey players from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana to be members of the Indian team which qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics.
The last time India played in Olympics was in the 1980 edition when it was given a direct entry because of the boycott led by USA in the Moscow edition.
India made it to the next edition of Olympics (for the first time after 36 years) by virtue of defeating Japan 1-0 in the play-off match for the fifth place and both Ms. Soundarya and Ms. Rajani were part of the team in the World Cup semi-final league matches in Belgium.
Ms. Soundarya says she is delighted. “This is one of the finest moments in my career. We are all so happy that our biggest dream is coming true,” said both Ms.Soundarya and Ms. Rajani in a chat with The Hindu in Belgium.
For someone who took to hockey watching seniors and playing for India since 2006, the 25-year-old Ms. Soundarya was also a member of the Indian team, which won the silver in the Senior Asia Cup and the Champions Trophy.
Ms. Soundarya says that the team was confident in today’s crucial match. “Hats off to my teammate Rani Rampal; we emerged winner. And we are in celebratory mood right now,” she said in a voice choked with joy.
“I owe my success to my first coach Maqbool in Nizamabad and then to the SAI coaches, including Gloria, at the SAI Centre in Hyderabad, where I trained for five years,” the star player recalled. “Right now, no major event is scheduled and since we have qualified for the Olympics, some events may be lined up,” she said.
“I feel honoured to play for India, coming from a place like Nizamabad (she was a student of Modern Public School) which has no history of hockey players,” Ms. Soundarya exclaims.
Achievements not a surprise
SAI hockey coach P. Madhukaran, who was earlier the Indian women’s World Cup coach, recalls the abundance of talent these girls have shown in their formative years.
“Their achievements are not a surprise to me given their commitment and sincerity to keep improving,” he says.
