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Field Hockey Canada and Commonwealth Games Canada today announced the 32 athletes who will represent Canada at the XIXth Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India this October. The field hockey competition is traditionally strong at the Commonwealth Games. Seven of the ten men's teams that qualified for Delhi also competed at this year's World Cup, while five of the women's teams will be competing at the World Cup in Argentina in early September.

The Canadian men's team, which has climbed into the top ten in the recently released world rankings, will be led by two-time Olympians Ken Pereira (Unionville, ON) and Rob Short (Tsawwassen, BC), both of whom are heading into their fourth Commonwealth Games. The two veterans, playing professionally on the same club team in Holland, have also represented Canada in four Pan American Games, and will be heading back to India six months after the World Cup in Delhi.

The Canadian women's team will count on the leadership of Stephanie Nesbitt (Vancouver, BC), who started her international career eight years ago at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, and Katie Baker (Argyle Shore, PEI), honored with a nomination to the 2009 Pan American Elite Team.

"I've been lucky to catch the women's team in action several times over the last two summers and I was in Delhi during the men's World Cup to watch Canada compete," said Martha Deacon, Chef de Mission for Team Canada 2010. "The facility is absolutely spectacular and the level of competition for both the men and the women at the Commonwealth Games will be outstanding!"

"We've had significant turnover in our men's national team since the World Cup in March with five retiring players," said Hari Kant, Men's High Performance Director for Field Hockey Canada. "We also have new leadership with Robin D'Abreo being named Head Coach. The Commonwealth Games field includes many of the top 12 teams in the world and will provide our younger players with a perfect opportunity to perform against quality opposition and gain valuable experience towards our qualification for the 2012 Olympic Games."

"The team selected is relatively young in terms of experience," said Louis Mendonca, coach of the Canadian women's team. "The Commonwealth Games will be a great testing ground for measuring present progress and preparing us for future important events such as the Pan American Games and Olympic Qualifier. We had some good results in a series of matches against India and Chile, but we now need to bring more consistency to our performance to be competitive against teams in the top ten."

Men's Team:
Adam Froese Abbotsford, BC
David Carter Vancouver, BC
Matthew Guest Vancouver, BC
Richard Hildreth Vancouver, BC
David Jameson Vancouver, BC
Antoni Kindler Vancouver, BC
Mark Pearson Vancouver, BC
Keegan Pereira Ajax, ON
Ken Pereira Unionville, ON
Rob Short Tsawwassen, BC
Iain Smythe Vancouver, BC
Hudson Stewart Vancouver, BC
Sukhwinder (Gabbar) Singh Surrey, BC
Scott Tupper Vancouver, BC
Jesse Watson North Vancouver, BC
Philip Wright Vancouver, BC

Coach: Robin D'Abreo Vancouver, BC

The Canadian men's team will open the competition on Tuesday, October 5, against South Africa before playing against England, Trinidad & Tobago, and New Zealand to wrap up the pool round.

Women's Team:
Abigail Raye Kelowna, BC
Ali Lee Victoria, BC
Amanda Stone Richmond, BC
Anna Kozniuk North Vancouver, BC
Azelia Liu Scarborough, ON
Diana Roemer Mill Bay, BC
Kate Gillis Kingston, Ontario
Katie Baker Argyle Shore, PEI
Katie Collison Duncan, BC
Kristine Wishart Hamilton, ON
Robyn Pendleton Victoria, BC
Samantha Smith North Vancouver, BC
Stephanie Jameson Vancouver, BC
Stephanie Nesbitt North Vancouver, BC
Thea Culley Rossland, BC
Tyla Flexman Vancouver, BC

Coach: Louis Mendonca Thornhill, ON

The Canadian women's team will open the competition on Monday, October 4 against Malaysia, then will play pool games against England, Wales and New Zealand.