You can’t talk Olympics without mentioning the Netherlands women’s field hockey team. The Dutch women pretty much put on a clinic at every summer games — they’ve won two consecutive gold medals (Beijing, London) and are eyeing their third in Rio.
Of course, the face associated with this dominant Dutch team is none other than Ellen Hoog. She won the International Hockey Federation’s Player of the Year Award in 2014 and has two additional gold medals from the Women’s Hockey World Cup — yeah, she’s an absolute star.
Last year, CNN asked Ellen if she was bothered about the attention her team receives for their looks:
“I think it’s nice when people say we are a good-looking team, but in the end we want to win gold medals,” she tells CNN’s Human to Hero series.
“If that’s the reason why people are going to watch more hockey then I think it’s perfectly fine!
“Of course, we know that men like to watch our games maybe because of our short skirts and that kind of thing, but in Holland everyone likes to watch us because we perform very well.”
Fantastic response. Ellen and the rest of the Dutch women begin their quest for a three-peat on Aug. 12. against New Zealand.
[Ellen Hoog- IG]
