Ireland captain David Harte says he is honoured to have been named as the International Hockey Federation (FIH) Goalkeeper of the Year for the second time in a row.
Harte captained Ireland to their first Olympic Games in 108 years when the Green Machine competed at the Rio Olympic Games.
“To win this award truly is an incredible honour and one which I am very proud to receive,” he said.
“Even to be nominated for a second time was more than I could have hoped for, especially given the world class goalkeepers involved.”
Juan Vivaldi (Argentina) Jaap Stockmann (Netherlands), Vincent Vanasch (Belgium) and Parattu Raveendran Sreejesh (India) were nominated for the award, with Vivaldi and Vanasch winning gold and silver respectively at the Rio Games.
“Although it is an individual award, it partly belongs to my teams at both club & country level as I would not have made it here without them,” Harte added.
Harte has played hockey in India since 2013 and is currently flying high at the top of the table with Dabang Mumbai in the Hockey India League, telling RTÉ he is enjoying life in Asia.
Harte made his debut for Ireland in 2006 and has 181 caps to his name, claiming Goalkeeper of the Tournament awards at the 2014 Hockey Champions Challenge in Malaysia and the 2015 EuroHockey Nations Championship.
