Rani Rampal nominated for World Games Athlete of the Year by FIH

The Indian women's hockey side skipper Rani Rampal has been nominated by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) for the "World Games Athlete of the Year" award. The Indian is one of 25 stars nominated for the prestigious award from different sports. All 25 players were nominated for the award by their respective international sporting federations.

Rampal has been recommended for the award for her outstanding showings and her ability to lead the team by example. The feat was applauded by President of Hockey India Mushtaque Ahmad. "We at Hockey India are elated by the news of Rani being nominated for the World Games Athlete of the Year 2019. She indeed is a huge inspiration to many in the country and has made her own mark in the sport."

The winner of the the 'World Games Athlete' will be decided by online voting, with the contest closing on January 30, 2020.

"We hope this nomination comes as an inspiration to many other aspiring players who wish to emulate Rani's success. We urge all hockey fans to vote for Rani and also continue to support Rani and the Indian Women's Team as they prepare for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics," Ahmad added.

Rani had helped the Indian Eves to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games with a stellar show in the Qualifiers. It is the second successive time that the Indian women's side will play in the Olympics.

This is the sixth edition of the World Games Athlete awards that recognizes and honours a sports star or a team for their outstanding effort or for their commitment to social causes and fair behaviour. In 2019, the acrobatic gymnastics couple Georgii Pataraia and Mariia Chernova of Russia won the award with 159,348 votes. They just about managed to defeat second-placed American powerlifter Jennifer Thompson who ended with 152,865 votes.