Hockey sensation Rani Rampal: I don't want my father to work as cart-puller anymore

Rani Rampal was declared as the player of the tournament

Rani Rampal, an 18-year-old girl from Shahbad village in Haryana, was declared as the player of the tournament as Indian junior girls won their first-ever World Cup bronze medal in Monchengladbach, Germany last week.

She took time to recognise the contributions of her father, a mere cart puller, who made sure Rani realised her dream of representing her nation in Hockey.

Returning home on Tuesday with the Indian team, Rani said: “Our win in Germany proves that Indian hockey is not dead.”

Rani Rampal was quoted as saying by NDTV: “I tell my father not to work anymore. But he insists on working. He doesn’t listen to me. I hope I can convince him now.”

On her Dronacharya award-winning coach Baldev Singh, she said: “I owe everything to him. He gave me a hockey stick and kit as my family could not afford it. He wanted someone like me, who is from a low-income background, to make a name in the sport, and he trained me at the Shahbad Hockey Academy.”