Hockey India Congratulates Lilima Minz On Completing 150 International Caps

Lilima-Minz-extreme-right-celebrates-scoring-a-goal-for-India

Hockey India has congratulated the Indian Women’s Hockey Team Midfielder Lilima Minz for achieving the milestone of completing 150 International Caps for the country. Lilima achieved the feat during India’s Final match of the Olympic Test Event against Japan held at the Oi Hockey Stadium in Tokyo, Japan.

The 25-year-old from Bihabandh-Tanatoli village of Sundergarh district in Odisha made her International debut for the Indian Women’s Team in 2011 during the Four-Nation Tournament in Argentina. She was picked in the National Camp after a series of impressive performances in the domestic circuit. The Midfielder became a regular feature in the Indian Women’s Team from December 2012 when she took part in the Series against New Zealand. Lilima was also a member of the team which took part in the Women’s Hockey World League Semi-Final 2013, along with the Indian team that won the women’s hockey test series 6-0 against Malaysia in 2014.

Her consistent performances for the Indian team saw her represent the nation at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and she also became a part of the side that won Bronze Medal at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, Korea. The 25-year-old went on to represent India at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, where the Indian Women’s Hockey team made their first appearance after a gap of 36 years. Lilima was also part of the Indian team’s historic 9th Women’s Asia Cup win in 2017. She went on to participate at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games 2018 where the team finished fourth, and Silver Medal-winning team of 5th Women’s Asian Champions Trophy 2018, as well as the team which finished in the Quarter-Finals of the FIH Women’s World Cup 2018. The Midfielder’s most recent achievement was winning the Silver Medal with the team at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia.

“It is an extremely proud moment for me to be completing 150 International Caps for my country. My career took off after joining the Panposh Sports Hostel in Rourkela, and I thank my coaches from Odisha who helped me in my formative years. I feel fortunate to be part of this talented Indian team where teammates and support staff are more like family members. The experience of representing the nation 150 times has been amazing over the years, and I have been fortunate enough to have won some medals for the country. It is again an important phase leading up to next year’s Olympic Games, and I am looking forward to achieving our team goals and keep making the country proud,” Lilima added.

Congratulating Lilima Minz on completing 150 International Caps, Mohd. Mushtaque Ahmad, President, Hockey India said, “On behalf of Hockey India, I would like to congratulate Lilima on this wonderful milestone. She is a very determined player who is resolute on the field, and has qualities that motivate other players. Lilima has over the years proved her worth in the Indian team with significant performances and has also been part of India’s major victories. I wish her the very best in her endeavors for the future and hope that she continues to make the nation proud.”