![]() Chanu in 2013 | |||
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam | ||
Born | Imphal, Manipur, India | 25 February 1992||
Playing position | Halfback | ||
Senior career | |||
Years | Team | ||
Manipur Hockey | |||
Railways | |||
2025– | Rarh Bengal Tigers | ||
National team | |||
Years | Team | Caps | Goals |
2008– | India | 252 | (8) |
Medal record | |||
Last updated on: 18 July 2018 |
Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam (born 25 February 1992) is an Indian field hockey player from Manipur. A former captain of Indian national team, she played her 250th international match in 22 February 2025. [1] She plays as a halfback for the team.
Chanu was born in Imphal, Manipur, to Pukhrambam Shyamsundar and Pukhrambam Ongbi Lata. [2] Her father is a driver and her mother is a home maker. Her great grandfather, Pukhrambam Angangcha was a successful polo player. Chanu has an elder sister and a younger brother. Her interest in sports began when she accompanied her father to watch a football match during the 1999 National Games hosted in Manipur. [2]
Chanu began playing hockey at the stadium the age of eleven, having been encouraged by her uncle to pick up the sport. [3] He got her enrolled at the Posterior Hockey Academy in Manipur in 2002. She began playing in the Inter-school tournaments, and was subsequently selected for the team participating in Sub-junior and Junior National Hockey Championships, where she caught the attention of the national selection committee. [3] She is employed in the Central Mumbai Railway since 2010 and is a senior ticket collector. She resides in the Railways quarters in Sion, Mumbai. [4] [5]
Chanu made her international debut at the 2008 Women's Hockey Junior Asia Cup, held in Kuala Lumpur, where India won a bronze medal. In 2009, she was dropped out of the team and she used that time to graduate from the Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy, completing her course. She later, joined the joined Central Railways, Mumbai. [3]
She led the Indian junior team to a bronze medal finish at the 2013 Junior World Cup at Mönchengladbach, Germany. [6] Later, she made her debut in the senior national team, and was part of the squad that won the bronze medal at the 2014 Asian Games held at Incheon.
Chanu was part of the team that reached the semifinals of the 2014–15 Women's FIH Hockey World League held at Antwerp, Belgium. On returning home, Chanu along with Anuradha Thokchom and Lily Chanu Mayengbam given a warm reception in their hometown. [7]
Ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics, Chanu was named the captain of the national team. [8] She led the team at the four-nation tournament in Australia that was held in May. [2] Prior to the Olympics, she suffered a major knee injury and returned to training after eight weeks rehab. She captained the women's team that played Olympics after a gap of 36 years, after qualifying in Antwerp. [4]
She played her 150th international match in Madrid, Spain during the Indian national team's June 2018 tour of Spain. [9]
She received the Arjuna Award from the President of India on 9 January 2024. [10] [11] [12]