Odisha’s Deep Grace Ekka selected for Arjuna Award

Bhubaneswar: International hockey player from Odisha, Deep Grace Ekka, has been selected for the Arjuna Award.

The Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports yesterday announced the list of winners of National Sports Awards-2022, in which Ekka’s name has been featured under the Arjuna Award category.

The awardees will receive their awards from the President of India at a specially organized function at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 30th November, 2022.

The National Sports Awards Selection Committee had earlier recommended her name for the  second-highest sporting honour of India.

Ekka has been playing as a defender in Indian Women’s Hockey Team for the last several years.

Born in Odisha’s Sundargarh district, Ekka started playing hockey in 2011. Initially, she played for Indian Women’s Junior Team.

The ace defender has so far played 240 hockey matches. She was the member of Indian Women’s Hockey Team that won bronze medal in this year’s Birmingham Commonwealth Games.

She also represented the Indian Women’s Hockey Teams that won medals in 2014 and 2018 Asian Games.

She was also a member of the title-winning Indian Women’s Hockey Teams in 2016 Women’s Asian Champions Trophy and 2017 Asia Cup Hockey.