The award ceremony for Spain's National Sports Awards on Monday night in Madrid, which are presented annually by members of the Royal Family, saw a hockey player take center stage.
Seven time FIH Player of the Year and captain of the World Cup-winning team in her native Rosario, Argentina last September Luciana Aymar, accepted the award for the Best Iberoamerican Athlete of 2010 from the hands of Spanish King Don Juan Carlos. She joined an illustrious cast of fellow award winners featuring Vicente del Bosque and Iker Casillas, representing the Spanish Football World Champions, 2010 MotoGP World Champion Jorge Lorenzo and Basque mountaineer Edurne Pasabán, the first woman to climb the planet's 14 peaks over 8.000m.
The "Magician", as Aymar is referred to in Argentina, was delighted with the prize. She once again topped football superstar Lionel Messi, after taking last year's top honors in Argentina's national sports awards. Calling it a great honor and conveying her excitement about the recognition for herself as well as her sport, Aymar said, "It is very satisfying and very rewarding for me personally, to reach this level. It is fabulous to have passed football by which is so important here in Spain, as well as in Argentina."
Aymar also confirmed her intention to continue gracing the hockey fields and stunning audiences around the world with her skills, and disclosed her next ambition: "I am very demanding as an athlete, I want the gold in the Games, even though once there, anything can happen."
Leonas coach Carlos "Chapa" Retegui, already confirmed in an interview last week that Aymar would re-join the team shortly, and will be competing in the Rabo FIH Champions Trophy in Amsterdam in June, which is an important part of the preparation for Argentina for its next important event, the Panamerican Games in Guadalajara later this year , which has direct qualification for the 2012 Olympic Hockey Tournament is at stake.
First up, however, is a tour in Oceania from 23 March to 11 April, during which the Lionesses will play three test matches against New Zealand and four against Australia, with the list of 20 players who will travel announced next week.
