US Field Hockey: FIH Players of the Year Announced

United States Field Hockey Association
A member of the United States Olympic Committee

Netherland's Stephan Veen, Australia's Alyson Annan selected first-ever FIH Players of the Year

Alexandria, Egypt – Stephan Veen of the Netherlands and Alyson Annan of Australia were announced tonight as the first-ever recipients of the International Hockey Federation’s Player of the Year Awards during a dinner held here commemorating the 75^th Anniversary of the FIH. The Player of the Year trophies, which were presented by FIH President, Juan Angel Calzado, are specially commissioned bronze statues depicting a male and female hockey player in action.

Goalkeeper Peggy Storrar was the United States' nominee for the inaugural FIH honor.

Alyson Annan, already widely regarded as the top female hockey player in the world, has been a key contributor to the many championships won by the Australian women’s hockey team in recent years. Her credits include four Champions Trophy gold medals, two World Cup gold medals, one Olympic gold medal and one Commonwealth Games gold medal.

In addition to her contributions to the Australian team effort, Alyson Annan has earned numerous individual honours over the years. She was the top goal scorer at the 1999 Champions Trophy, as well as at the 1998 World Cup where she was selected as Player of the Tournament.

Stephan Veen, captain of the Dutch men’s team national since September 1996, also has a long list of Championships to his credit. Veen has earned two Olympic gold medals, three World Cup gold medals, a remarkable 10 Champions Trophy gold medals and two European Championships.

Veen helped inspire the Dutch team to the 1998 World Cup championship against Spain. With the Netherlands losing by two goals to none with a little more than 10 minutes to play, Veen scored Holland’s first goal of the match, and then urged his team on to eventually tie the game and then ultimate victory in extra time.

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