Sangita Kumari is an Indian hockey player who plays as a forward.
Wiki/Biography
Sangita Kumari was born on Monday, 24 December 2001 (age 22; as of 2023) in Nawatoli village, Karangaguri, Simdega district, Jharkhand. Her zodiac sign is Capricorn. Sangita completed her schooling from RC MS Karangaguri Secondary School, Simdega, Jharkhand.
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′6″
Weight (approximately): 50kg
Hair color: black
Eye color: dark brown
Body measurements (approximately): 32-28-30
family
Parents and siblings
Sangita Kumari’s father Ranjit Manjhi is a farmer and her mother Lakhmani Devi is a housewife.
Sangeeta Kumari and her father Ranjit Manjhi
Sangeeta has three sisters, one of whom is Sandeepa Kumari, who is also a hockey player. She also has a brother named Sanjay Manjhi.
Sangeeta Kumari (left) and her sister
Sangita Kumari (centre) with her brother Sanjay Manjhi (left) and her mother Lakhmani Devi (right)
Sangeeta Kumari (left) and her sister
Sandeepa Kumari, sister of Sangita Kumari
husband
Sangeeta Kumari is unmarried.
religion
Sangita Kumari follows Sarnaism, a religious faith from the Indian subcontinent. The followers of this religion are nature worshipers and are said to be the largest tribal religion in India.
Sangita Kumari represents tribal ‘Sarna’ religion in her Instagram profile
Profession
hockey player
In 2016, Sangeeta Kumar was selected for the national youth training camp. In the same year, she made her debut in the Indian youth competition at the Five Nations Hockey Invitational Tournament in Valencia, Spain. She also scored her first international goal against Spain in the second game of the series. In the same year, she also represented the Indian women’s hockey team in the 4th Women’s U18 Asian Cup in 2016, scoring 8 goals and helping India defeat the South Korean team 3-0 to win the bronze medal. In 2018, Sangeeta participated in the 2018 Asian Youth Olympic Games women’s hockey qualifiers with the Indian team, and the Indian team won the silver medal. In 2022, she will represent India at the 22nd Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England. The Indian team won the bronze medal in the final of the tournament.
Sangita Kumari poses with bronze medalist at Commonwealth Games 2022
In 2023, Sangeeta Kumari was selected into the Indian hockey team to participate in the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. The Indian hockey team defeated Japan with a score of 2-1 to win the bronze medal in this tournament.
Sangita Kumari poses with bronze medalist at 19th Asian Games 2023
In the same year, Sangeeta participated in the 7th Women’s Asian Champions Cup held in Ranchi, India. The Indian hockey team defeated the Japanese team 4-0 in the final to win the championship. Sangeeta is the top scorer for the Indian team with a total of 6 goals in this tournament.
Sangeeta Kumari after winning the 7th Women’s Asian Championship trophy (2023)
In 2023, Sangeeta also represented the Railway Sports Promotion Council hockey team in the 3rd Indian Senior Women’s Hockey National Championship and won a silver medal.
Sangita Kumari poses with the silver medal at the 3rd Hockey India Senior Women’s Inter-Divisional National Championship (2023)
Awards
- 2023: 7th Women’s Asian Champions Cup “Best Player of Jharkhand”
Sangita Kumari won the ‘Best Player of Jharkhand’ award (2023)
- 2023: The 7th Women’s Asian Champions Cup “Rising Star of the Tournament”
Sangita Kumari wins ‘Rising Star of the Competition’ award
- 2023: 3rd Hockey India Senior Women’s Inter-Divisional National Championship ‘Man of the Match’
Sangita Kumari won the Man of the Match award (2023)
Facts/Trivia
- Sangita started playing field hockey in second grade. Her school had a rule that only people with hockey sticks could study in school.
- Since Sangeeta was born in poverty and had no financial resources, her father personally made her a hockey stick out of bamboo wood.
- Her mother opposed her decision to play hockey as she wanted Sangeeta to learn to do household chores, while Sangeeta’s father has been supportive of her journey.
- Sangita Kumari started her hockey journey at the age of 11 when she joined Astro Turf Hockey Stadium in Simdega and started living in their hostel.
- In 2018, Sangeeta suffered a serious injury and had to undergo anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) surgery on her right leg. Sangeeta returned to competition in 2019 after a one-year hiatus.
- In 2021, Sangeeta got a job as a Grade III employee with the Indian Railways and she also became a part of the Hockey team of the Railway Sports Promotion Council. During that event, Sangeeta bought dhoti for the elders of the village and presented hockey sticks and balls to the children.
Sangita Kumari distributes dhoti in her hometown
- Sangeeta was the first person from her village to get a government job.
- When Sangeeta received her first salary as an Indian Railways employee, she presented hockey balls to the children of her village.
- One day, the principal of Sangeeta School organized an international hockey match to be televised. Sangeeta immediately started learning the techniques and moves. After watching the match, she felt that she too could play for the Indian team one day and that’s when she decided to take it up as a career option.
- Sangeeta got her first hockey stick when she was named the best player in a school competition.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education