Luciana Aymar

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Luciana Aymar
Personal information
Full nameLuciana Paula Aymar
Born (1977-08-10) August 10, 1977
Rosario, Santa Fe, Argentina
Height1.72 m (5 ft 7 12 in)
Playing positionMidfielder
Youth career
Fisherton
Jockey Club de Rosario
Senior career
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1998Rot-Weiss Köln
1999Real Club de Polo
2000–2007Quilmes
2008–2011GEBA
National team
1994–1998Argentina U21
1996–PresentArgentina350(148)
Infobox last updated on: October 1, 2012

Luciana Paula Aymar (born August 10, 1977) is an Argentine field hockey midfielder. She is the only player in history to receive the FIH Player of the Year Award award eight times,[1] and she is considered the best female hockey player of all time.[2]

Aymar is known for her ability to beat opposing players using her dribbling skills, for which she has been compared with Argentine football idol Diego Maradona. For this reason she has received the nicknames "La Maga", "El Diego" and "La Maradona del hockey".

Career

Aymar started playing at age seven for Club Atlético Fisherton, in her native Rosario. She moved to Jockey Club de Rosario six years later. Eventually, she began training with the junior national team, for which she had to travel every day to Buenos Aires. In 1997 she was part of the national team that won the Pan American Games Junior Championship, and a year later she debuted with the senior national team, finishing fourth at the World Cup. She was also the youngest Argentine to be accepted into the squad, at just 16.

Aymar is part of a generation in Argentine field hockey that has won several international tournaments from the 1999 Pan American Games on, including an Olympic silver medal, and three Champions Trophies. Nicknamed La Maga ("The Magician"), her outstanding performances have driven her to be chosen as the FIH player of the year eight times. She carried the flag for her country at the opening ceremony of the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Beyond her athletic life Luciana launched a modelling career.[3]

Aymar took Argentina to win the World Cup in her hometown Rosario in a brand new stadium.

In the 2012 Summer Olympics Luciana became the second Argentine to achieve 4 medals, the other being Carlos Mauricio Espínola.[4]

Awards and honours

Club

Rot-Weiss Köln
  • European Club Championship: 1998

International

Argentina Junior
  • Pan American Games: Gold Medal (1997)
  • Junior World Cup: Bronze Medal (1997)
Argentina

Individual

References

External links

Awards
Preceded by
Australia Alyson Annan
FIH Player of the Year
2001
Succeeded by
Argentina Cecilia Rognoni
Preceded by
Netherlands Mijntje Donners
FIH Player of the Year
2004–2005
Succeeded by
Netherlands Minke Booij
Preceded by
Netherlands Minke Booij
FIH Player of the Year
2007–2010
Succeeded by
Netherlands Maartje Paumen
Preceded by
Netherlands Maartje Paumen
FIH Player of the Year
2013
Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by
Juan Martin Del Potro
Olimpia de Oro
2010
Succeeded by
Lionel Messi
Olympic Games
Preceded by
Manu Ginóbili
Flagbearer for  Argentina
London 2012
Succeeded by
Incumbent
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