Teun de nooijer

 Teun de nooijer   

Playing position - midfielder
Nationality - Dutch (Netherlands)

Teun Floris de Nooijer (born 22 March 1976) is a field hockey player from the Netherlands, who twice became Olympic champion with the Dutch national squad, in 1996 and in 2000, and was on the team in 2012. He currently plays for Dutch side HC Bloemendaal and in Hockey India League for Uttar Pradesh Wizards.

Born in Egmond aan den Hoef, he made his debut on 4 June 1994 in a friendly match against New Zealand. Since then the midfielder played over three hundred international matches for the Dutch. On April 4, 2007 he earned his 350th cap for the Netherlands national field hockey team, when the team defeated Belgium (7-3) in a friendly in Boxtel, Noord-Brabant.

De Nooijer started playing hockey at the age of nine, with his brothers in the backyard of their house. He joined HC Alkmaar at the age of eleven, and was selected for the Dutch under-16 team 2 years later. At fifteen, De Nooijer made his debut in the senior men's league with HC Alkmaar, and two years later, he first played in the Netherlands' elite league with HC Bloemendaal.

After two seasons wearing the number 11 shirt, De Nooijer switched to the number 14, made famous by Johan Cruijff, and has worn it for club and country ever since. The number was later bestowed on the signature stick he helped to create, the Dita Giga #14

De Nooijer played for Alkmaar before moving to HC Bloemendaal. After the 1998 Hockey World Cup he played for a couple of months in Germany, at Harvestehuder THC. In the final of the 1998 Hockey World Cup in Utrecht he scored the golden goal in the final against Spain. De Nooijer was named World Hockey Player of the Year in 2003, 2005 and 2006 by the International Hockey Federation (FIH). De Nooijer created history when he won the award, which was presented by Jacques Rogge for a record third time. Jamie Dwyer, however, equaled this record when he won the award for the third time in 2009, and surpassed it when he won the award again in 2010. The only other man to have won the award more than once is de Nooijer’s former team mate Stephan Veen (1998, 2000).

Earlier in 2006, de Nooijer was the decisive factor in the Champions Trophy final as the Netherlands claimed a record-equalling eighth crown and de Nooijer's sixth.

He claimed his 400th cap for the Netherlands on 15 August 2009 against the 5-3 victory against India .

Over an 18 year career which earned him a world record of 453 international caps
Won two Olympic gold and a world cup and three FIH player of the year
However he wore the No.14 shirt in honour of Holland’s finest footballer, Johan cuyff

Teun de Nooijer is one of those players who are blessed with incredible talent which includes Explosive speed and skill, deceptive body swerve, superb passes and stunning finishing. He wouldn’t be named “Player of the Year” three times if he is not good at what he does. Until this day, he continues to play hockey and inspire us with his gifted skills and astounding abilities

source : wikipedia

url : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teun_de_Nooijer