Along with Harmanpreet Singh for the male honours, the Netherlands midfielder Yibbi Jansen was named the female Player of the Year at the FIH Star Awards last week.
Yibbi was honoured for her exceptional performance at the Paris 2024 Olympics, where she emerged as the leading goalscorer with nine goals in eight matches.
The 24-year-old was recently acquired by the Odisha Warriors in the auction of the inaugural Women’s Hockey India League (HIL) for an impressive 29 lakhs, making her the second-costliest player in the league.
Yibbi is known for her fierce drag flicks and scored crucial goals during the Olympics, most notably the equaliser in the gold medal match with less than 10 minutes remaining, ultimately helping her team secure the top spot on the podium.
“I’m very happy and proud to be named the FIH Player of the Year for 2024 but in the end, it’s a team sport. We achieved our goal, and my biggest dream last summer was winning the Olympic gold. And then winning the Player of the Year Award after such a good summer is very special,” Yibbi commented on the achievement.
On playing in the HIL, she said, “I have learned a lot from players who are older than me. It’s always nice to look at each other and take some skills they have into your own, into your own play. I think we can learn a lot from each other during the HIL because we play with players from different nationalities and every country has a different type of play. And training with other drag flickers will be fun as well.”
Since making her debut for the Dutch Women’s Hockey Team in 2018 against the United States, Yibbi has amassed 82 caps and scored an astounding 71 goals in the orange jersey.
“I’m really looking forward to the adventure this January in India. It’s the first time the Hockey India League is being held for women and I’m very pleased to play for the Odisha Warriors. We have a nice team so winning the Hockey India League would be very cool. I’m also looking forward to playing in front of Indian fans. We were in India last year as well and I loved it. I think it’s going to be a big adventure and I am really looking forward to this January. Hopefully, lots of crowds will come to the stadium and it will be an adventure which I will remember for life.”
The Odisha Warriors’ roster also includes international stars like Freeke Moes from the Netherlands, Claire Colwill, Jocelyn Bartram, and Kaitlin Nobbs from Australia.
They will be joined by a strong group of Indian core players including Neha, Deep Grace Ekka, Ishika Chaudhary, Baljeet Kaur, Jyoti Chhatri, and highly regarded youngsters Annu, Sakshi Rana, and Kanika Siwach.
