MOLLYMOOK'S Kalindi Commerford, Gerringong's Grace Stewart and their Hockeyroos are scheduled to resume their FIH Pro League 2020 campaigns in April after the International Hockey Federation (FIH) announced the revised fixture for the postponed global competition.
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The FIH confirmed the remaining schedule for the women's Pro League which was halted back in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Hockeyroos, who currently sit fourth on the ladder, are set to take on the United States away in their first matches back on April 3 and 4.
This will be followed by the Hockeyroos taking on trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand on the Anzac Day weekend (April 24 and 25) in Perth.
These matches will be the Hockeyroos' first internationals since Hockey Australia announced it had suspended all international travel on the night of team's last Pro League matches against Argentina on March 7.
In such a challenging period and with a hectic hockey calendar in 2021 due to the rescheduled Tokyo Olympic Games, the fixture schedule was established in cooperation and agreement between the 11 participating National Associations (NAs) and the FIH.
"I'm delighted we have been able to get this schedule in place and it is really important in terms of our preparation for the Olympics next year," said Hockey Australia head of high performance Toni Cumpston.
"We're really looking forward to the competition starting, obviously pending the situation around COVID-19 come April next year.
"It has been a hard year for everyone in hockey and the opportunity to play in the FIH Pro League is a light at the end of that."
"We are really hopeful that the world can get this pandemic under control and can play the game we love on the international stage."
Following the games against New Zealand, the Hockeyroos will then head overseas for the remainder of the competition, finishing with double headers against Germany in Monchengladbach on May 29 and 30.
Hockeyroos coach Paul Gaudoin said the Hockeyroos are eagerly anticipating what lies ahead.
"This break has given everyone an opportunity to freshen up their minds and bodies and rediscover that real hunger and passion to play hockey," Gaudoin said.
"Now that the revised fixtures have been released, we can start to plan and structure our preparations accordingly."
Commenting on the announcement, FIH president Dr Narinder Dhruv Batra said: "All hockey fans have been eagerly waiting for the day where the world's best teams would play again.
"While the pandemic is not over and staying healthy while playing hockey is an absolute priority, it's a sign of hope that the resumption of the 2020 FIH Hockey Pro League is looming."
FIH will continue to closely monitor the global evolution of the COVID-19 situation, with the safety of athletes, fans and everyone involved being top priority.
The first match of the FIH Pro League 2020 resumption will be on September 22 with Germany hosting Belgium.