Lucas Martín Vila (born 23 August 1986) is an Argentine former field hockey player who played as a forward.
He made his debut for the national squad in 2005, after having played the Junior World Cup in Rotterdam, Netherlands. He played a total of 274 times for the Argentina national team until 2023. His older brothers Matías and Rodrigo were also field hockey players for Argentina.
International career
At the 2012 Summer Olympics, Vila competed for Argentina in the men's tournament.[1] Lucas won the bronze medal at the 2014 Men's Hockey World Cup and three medals at the Pan American Games. He was part of the Argentinian squad, which won the gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics. In 2018 he was selected for the 2018 World Cup which means he has played in four consecutive World Cups.[2] He scored 1 goal in four matches in that tournament.[3] In July 2019, he was selected in the Argentina squad for the 2019 Pan American Games.[4] They won the gold medal by defeating Canada 5–2 in the final.[5] In December 2019, he was nominated for the FIH Player of the Year Award.[6] After the 2023 Men's FIH Hockey World Cup he retired from the national team.[7]
Club career
Vila started his career in Argentina at Banco Provincia. In the 2005–06 season he played for Harvestehude in the German Bundesliga.[8] In 2007 he moved to the Netherlands to play for TMHC Tilburg, which he left in 2010 to play for HGC.[9] He missed a big part of his first season at HGC because of a knee injury.[10] After two seasons with HGC he went to Belgium to play for Royal Orée before coming back to the Netherlands after one year to play for HC Den Bosch.[11] After one season with Den Bosch he went to Spain to play for Club de Campo. He left the club from Madrid also after one season to play for Real Club de Polo. With Real Club de Polo, he played in the Euro Hockey League.[12] In 2017 Vila transferred to his current club Mannheimer HC in Germany.[13] After three seasons in Mannheim he made a move to Leuven.[14] On 20 August 2021, it was announced he would leave Belgium to play for Spanish second division side Benalmádena.[15][16]
Honours
Club
- HGC
- Real Club de Polo
- Copa del Rey: 2015–16, 2016–17
International
- Argentina
- Summer Olympics: 2016
- Pan American Games: 2011, 2015, 2019
- Pan American Cup: 2013, 2017
- Champions Challenge: 2007
- South American Games: 2022
- South American Championship: 2013
- Argentina U21
Individual
- South American Championship leading goalscorer: 2013
- Junior World Cup Best player: 2005
References
- ↑ "Lucas Vila". 2012 Summer Olympics. Archived from the original on 25 May 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
- ↑ "LOS LEONES SE EMBARCAN HACIA LA COPA DEL MUNDO DE INDIA". cahockey.org.arg (in Spanish). 18 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
- ↑ "VILA Lucas". tms.fih.ch. International Hockey Federation. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
- ↑ "Los Leones Que Buscarán La Clasificación Olímpica en Lima". www.cahockey.org.ar (in Spanish). Confederación Argentina de Hockey. 12 July 2019. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
- ↑ "Los Leones, medalla de oro en hockey de los Panamericanos". www.pagina12.com.ar (in Spanish). Página/12. 10 August 2019. Retrieved 11 August 2019.
- ↑ "Manpreet Singh nominated for FIH Player of the Year award". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Lausanne: The Times of India. 6 December 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2019.
- ↑ "Lucas Vila anunció su retiro de Los Leones" (in Spanish).
- ↑ "Harvestehude stürzt Spitzenreiter - UHC mit herber Pleite" (in German). Retrieved 19 March 2020.
- ↑ Rippe, Hessel. "1e elftal Hockeyclub Tilburg loopt leeg". omroepbrabant.nl (in Dutch). Omroep Brabant. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
- ↑ "HGC'er Lucas Vila start met revalidatie". hoofdklassehockey.nl (in Dutch). 3 February 2011. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
- ↑ Dikkers, Pim (15 May 2013). "HC Den Bosch haalt Lucas Vila". bd.nl (in Dutch). Brabants Dagblad. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
- ↑ "Polo's Lucas Vila finally tasting EHL action". ehlhockey.tv. Euro Hockey League. 21 March 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
- ↑ "Mannheim make huge signing as Vila moves to Germany". ehlhockey.tv. Euro Hockey League. 6 July 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
- ↑ "Transfert : un Vila à Heverlee". okey.lalibre.be (in French). 17 August 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
- ↑ "Refuerzos De Lujo Para El CHP Benalmádena". rfeh.es (in Spanish). Real Federación Española de Hockey. 20 August 2021. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
- ↑ "Transferts : Jay et Lucas à Benalmadena". okey.lalibre.be (in French). 21 August 2021. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
External links
- Lucas Vila at the International Hockey Federation
- Lucas Vila at Olympedia
- Lucas Vila at the Argentine Olympic Committee (in Spanish)