Ace forward Lalremsiami says she is very excited to see young girls in Mizoram taking up Hockey in a big way and promising players are swiftly coming up the ranks.
For this she gave credit to Hockey India’s latest initiative through their ‘Hockey India ka Abhiyan Har Ghar Ho Hockey Ki Pehchan’ program
Further elaborating Lalremsiami said, “When I took up the sport about eight-nine years ago, there were fewer players taking up hockey as there was more focus on football. I came into the national program after getting selected for the National Hockey Academy in New Delhi. But now there are many more players coming up in the state from far-off districts as the state association is actively hosting camps and local events.”
“It makes me feel very proud and happy to see more players coming into the Junior camps from the North East. Many youngsters now feel like they can make a career out of hockey which will help them provide a financially stable life for themselves and their families,” added the attacking forward who also doubles up as a halfback.
She praised her State’s Junior Women’s Team for claiming Silver Medal at the 1st Jr Women East Zone Championship Khunti (Ranchi), ahead of Odisha, which finished third. Mizoram lost to Jharkhand 2-2 (2-1 SO), after finishing second in Pool A with four victories under their belt from five games.
“We are all immensely proud of our Junior Team for their outstanding performance in the inaugural East Zone Championship . Their commitment, hard work, and team spirit were truly admirable and inspired us all, and I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate them on a job well done!” She told Hockey India in Bengaluru
Siami, as she is fondly called by her teammates, is from Kolasib – a village about 80 kilometres from Aizawl, Mizoram. She was selected for a state government-run program in Thenzawl in 2016. Her career took off when she was picked as a trainee at the National Hockey Academy in New Delhi where she honed her skills and found a breakthrough when she was picked for the U-18 Junior Indian team that played the Junior Asia Cup in 2016.
She is the only player from Mizoram to play for India at the 2018 Asian Games .In 2021, she became the first from the state to play in the Olympic Games in Tokyo where India finished fourth .
She was confident that Indian team will perform better in this year’s Asian Games. In 2018, the team ended their campaign with a Silver medal and in 2014 they won a Bronze medal. “Back in 2018, we lost the Final very closely to Japan. As youngsters back then, some of us were quite happy to win a Silver medal but now in hindsight I feel like we came so close to a historic Gold medal. Our aim this time is to win Gold and qualify for the Olympics for the third consecutive time,” Siami said.
Asked about her rise in the national team, Siami said, “It’s been a great journey so far. I never thought I would play more than 100 matches for India so fast in my career. I still have a long way to go and it’s been great to be part of the national team’s new era where we are doing well in top international tournaments,” she added.