PR Sreejesh becomes member of FIH Athletes' Committee

The International Hockey Federation (FIH) Executive Board has confirmed the nomination of Indian men's hockey team captain PR Sreejesh to the FIH Athletes' Committee.

FIH Athletes' Committee comprises a total of eight current and former hockey players who have the responsibility to act as a liaison between the FIH and the athletes and make sure the athletes have voice in the federation's decision making process.

Speaking about his nomination, PR Sreejesh, who led the Indian team to a historic silver medal feat at the FIH Champions Trophy in London last year, said, "It's a great honour to be part of the FIH Athletes' Committee which comprises of legendary players like Moritz Fuerste and other international greats. I am looking forward to this new responsibility."

While Sreejesh' role will also cover seeking and providing feedback to the FIH on behalf of all athletes, the Committee also gets to interact with the current Athletes' in a number of ways, including post-event surveys for the athletes and coaches to get direct feedbacks from the FIH events.

"We get to work together to develop the game and put forth players concerns and suggestions. It's a great initiative by the FIH to directly involve the players and I look forward to giving my suggestions with the inputs of our coaching staff, my team who I am sure will support me in this new endeavor. I see this as a great responsibility in terms of helping FIH develop the game globally,"stated Sreejesh, who is gearing up to play for the Uttar Pradesh Wizards in the Hockey India League slated to begin on January 21.

The FIH Athletes' Committee will also need to liaise with the Athletes' Committee of the IOC and other sporting organisations to enable the sharing of information and research. The team of eight will also get to develop, collate, provide and promote resources for Athletes on topics of direct concern including Athlete health and welfare, career preparation and management, anti-doping, betting and match-fixing.