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{{short description|Indian field hockey player}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox field hockey player
| name = Sunelita Toppo
| image =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|2007|4|11|df=y}}
| birth_place = Kukuda, [[Sundergarh district|Sundergarh]], [[Orissa]], India
| height =
| weight =
| position = Midfielder
| years1 =
| clubs1 = [[Hockey Association of Odisha]]
| caps1 =
| goals1 =
| years2 = 2025–
| clubs2 = [[Delhi SG Pipers]]
| caps2 =
| goals2 =
| nationalyears1 =
| nationalteam1 = [[India women's national under-21 field hockey team|India U21]]
| nationalcaps1 =
| nationalgoals1 =
| nationalyears2 = 2023–
| nationalteam2 = [[India women's national field hockey team|India]]
| nationalcaps2 = 47
| nationalgoals2 = 3
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalSport|Women's [[field hockey]]}}
{{MedalCountry|{{IND}}}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Women's Hockey Asia Cup|Asia Cup]]}}
{{MedalSilver|[[2025 Women's Hockey Asia Cup|2025 Hangzhou]]|}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Women's Asian Champions Trophy|Asian Champions Trophy]]}}
{{MedalGold|[[2024 Women's Asian Champions Trophy|2024 Rajgir]]|}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Women's Hockey Junior Asia Cup|Junior Asia Cup]]}}
{{MedalGold|[[2023 Women's Hockey Junior Asia Cup|2023 Japan]]|}}
{{MedalGold|[[2024 Women's Hockey Junior Asia Cup|2024 Muscat]]|}}
}}
'''Sunelita Toppo''' (born 11 April 2007)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sunelita Toppo Profile |url=https://www.hockeyindia.org/players/sunelita-toppo-profile-10598 |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=Hockey India |language=en}}</ref> is an Indian field hockey player who plays as a forward for the [[India women's national field hockey team|national team]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-02-22 |title=Hockey: In Kukuda's Sunelita Toppo and Sonepat's Sakshi Rana, two teenage hopes for India's future |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/sports/hockey/hockey-sunelita-toppo-sakshi-rana-india-future-fih-9850613/ |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref> She made her senior debut at the [[Women's FIH Pro League|Pro League]] against [[China]] in [[Bhubaneswar]] in February 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |last=PTI |date=2024-05-02 |title=Change of guard in women's hockey team: Salima replaces Savita as skipper |url=https://theprint.in/sport/change-of-guard-in-womens-hockey-team-salima-replaces-savita-as-skipper/2066327/ |access-date=2024-05-04 |website=ThePrint |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Personal life ==
Sunelita hails from Kukuda village<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Sunelita Toppo: Another addition to Sudargarh's rich hockey tradition |url=https://khelnow.com/hockey/2023-04-indian-womens-hockey-team-sunelita-toppo-sundargarh |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=Khel Now |language=en}}</ref> in [[Rajgangpur]] Block of [[Sundergarh district]] in Odisha.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2024-02-07 |title=Sunelita a bright spot as India take on formidable Aussies |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/hockey/top-stories/sunelita-a-bright-spot-as-india-take-on-formidable-aussies/articleshow/107473406.cms |access-date=2024-02-07 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref>  Her father Suresh Toppo is a farmer and her mother, Nelisunita Toppo,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Welcome :: Student Academic Management System (SAMS) |url=https://samsodisha.gov.in/HSS/Report_VerifiedStudentsForGenerateRegdNo.aspx?year=2022&did=30&cid=2745&sid=1 |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=samsodisha.gov.in}}</ref> is a housewife.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-04-12 |title="I want to play in the Olympics and win Gold medal for my country," says 16-year-old Sunelita Toppo after getting picked for Hockey India Senior Women National Coaching Camp |url=https://www.hockeyindia.org/news/i-want-to-play-in-the-olympics-and-win-gold-medal-for-my-country-says-16-year-old-sunelita-toppo-after-getting-picked-for-hockey-india-senior-women-national-coaching-camp |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=Hockey India |language=en}}</ref> She says, she is inspired by her aunt [[Anupa Barla]], who also played Junior World Cup for India.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Following her aunt's footsteps, Sunelita Toppo hopes to make it big in Indian hockey |url=https://stick2hockey.com/following-her-aunts-footsteps-sunelita-toppo-hopes-to-make-it-big-in-indian-hockey/ |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=Stick2Hockey |language=en-US}}</ref> She is a product of the Sports Authority of India Training Centre, Sundergarh, which is considered as a cradle of budding hockey stars in India.<ref name=":1" /> Initially, she started to play hockey at the age of 8, with bamboo sticks.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sunelita Toppo : వెదురు కర్రలతో హాకీ ఆడా |url=https://www.eenadu.net/telugu-news/women/inspiring-story-of-young-hockey-player-sunelita-toppo-in-telugu/6204/123220972 |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=EENADU |language=te}}</ref>

== Career ==
Sunelita represented Odisha in the National Games at Gujarat in 2022 and caught the eye of the selectors after an impressive performance. She made her junior India debut in February 2023 during the four-match [[South Africa]] tour<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Orisports.com |url=https://www.orisports.com/PersonDetails.aspx?pId=NjAyMg== |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=www.orisports.com}}</ref> and within a year she got the senior cap. She started as a mid-fielder but soon switched to forward line.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-11-27 |title='Great opportunity to represent India on the big stage,' says India women's junior forward Sunelita Toppo |url=https://thebridge.in/hockey/india-junior-womens-team-forward-sunelita-toppo-to-repsent-the-country-44914 |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=thebridge.in |language=en}}</ref> Later in June 2023, she was part of the Indian junior team that won the Junior Asia Cup in [[Japan]].<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=PTI |date=2023-06-10 |title=Junior India Women Hockey's Talented Forward Sunelita Toppo Named In Asian Games Core Group |url=https://www.outlookindia.com/sports/junior-india-women-hockey-s-talented-forward-sunelita-toppo-named-in-asian-games-core-group-news-293618 |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=www.outlookindia.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-06-08 |title=Hockey, Women's Junior Asia Cup: India finish group stage unbeaten to qualify for semis |url=https://scroll.in/field/1050567/hockey-womens-junior-asia-cup-india-finish-group-stage-unbeaten-to-qualify-for-semis |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=Scroll.in |language=en-US}}</ref> She was also part of the junior India team that played the 4-nation invitational tournament in [[Düsseldorf]], [[Germany]] in August 2023 and the [[Women's FIH Hockey Junior World Cup|Women's hockey Junior World Cup]] in [[Santiago]], [[Chile]] in December 2023.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |author=Scroll Staff |date=2023-12-10 |title=FIH Hockey Women's Junior World Cup: India finish ninth after penalty shoot-out win over USA |url=https://scroll.in/field/1060351/fih-hockey-womens-junior-world-cup-india-finish-ninth-after-penalty-shoot-out-win-over-usa |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=Scroll.in |language=en-US}}</ref> She also played for the senior team that won the gold medal at the Bihar Women's Asian Champions Trophy held in Rajgir in 2024.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}
{{Authority control}}

{{India FHW Squad 2025 Asia Cup}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toppo, Sunelita}}
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:2007 births]]
[[Category:People from Sundergarh district]]
[[Category:Indian women's field hockey players]]
[[Category:Field hockey players from Odisha]]
[[Category:Sportswomen from Odisha]]
[[Category:Women's field hockey forwards]]
[[Category:Hockey India League players]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian sportswomen]]

Sunelita Toppo - Revision history

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