Amanda Jane Hooper (née Christie, 1980 – 22 February 2011) was a female professional

field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...

player from New Zealand. She died in one of the office buildings that collapsed in the February

2011 Christchurch earthquake A major earthquake occurred in Christchurch on Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12:51 p.m. local time (23:51 UTC, 21 February). The () earthquake struck the entire of the Canterbury region in the South Island, centred south-east ...

at age 30. Amanda Christie was born in

Southland Southland may refer to: Places Canada * Dunbar–Southlands, Vancouver, British Columbia New Zealand * Southland Region, a region of New Zealand * Southland County, a former New Zealand county * Southland District, part of the wider Southland Reg ...

in 1980 and grew up in

Waikaia Waikaia, formerly known as Switzers, is a town in the Southland region of New Zealand's South Island. From 1909 until 1959, it was the terminus of the Waikaia Branch railway. The population in the 2013 census was 99, unchanged from the previo ...

on her family's farm. She was head girl at

Gore High School Gore High School is one of two secondary schools in Gore, New Zealand, the other being St Peter's College, Gore. It is located on Coutts Road in the west of Gore. Notable staff *Johnny Borland – high jumper, athletics official *George Jobbern ...

in 1998; her motivation for success stemmed from her father's death four years earlier. She was married to Richard Hooper and had two girls with him who at the time of her death were two and four years old. She was a member of the national women's squad '' The Black Sticks'' from 2001 to 2003, with a total of 40 caps. In 2003, she was nominated for World Junior Player of the Year. She participated in the

2002 Commonwealth Games The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002 were held in Manchester, England, from 25 July to 4 August, 2002. The 2002 Games were to be hosted in the United Kingdom to coin ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, England, where the New Zealand women came fourth. She competed in the

2002 Women's Hockey World Cup The 2002 Women's Hockey World Cup was the 10th edition of the Women's Hockey World Cup field hockey tournament. It was held from 24 November to 8 December 2002 in Perth, Western Australia. Argentina won the tournament for the first time after d ...

where New Zealand came eleventh. Locally, she played 55 games for

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

, and was a member of Carlton

Redcliffs Redcliffs is an outer coastal suburb of Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand. History The area of Redcliffs was first populated by humans about 700 years ago. In the 14th century, large groups of Māori, initially the Waitaha people and th ...

. Hooper lived in

Rolleston Rolleston may refer to: Places * Rolleston, Queensland, Australia * Rolleston, Leicestershire, England * Rolleston, Nottinghamshire, England ** Rolleston railway station * Rolleston on Dove, Staffordshire, England ** Rolleston Hall * Rolleston, Ne ...

and worked for Marac Finance as an account manager. Her company was based at the PGC building in the

Christchurch Central City Christchurch Central City or Christchurch City Centre is the geographical centre and the heart of Christchurch, New Zealand. It is defined as the area within the Four Avenues (Bealey Avenue, Fitzgerald Avenue, Moorhouse Avenue and Deans Avenue ...

that collapsed in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake. On 11 March 2011, Christchurch police confirmed that Hooper was one of the victims of the earthquake.

Ian Rutledge Ian Gregory Rutledge (born 24 June 1972 in Cudal, New South Wales) is a field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive ...

, her coach for two years, described her as having a "warm and caring nature" and "one of the hardest-training athletes he had come across in his coaching career". Her former team, Carlton Redcliffs, awards the Amanda Hooper Award and has retired her number from their women's team in her memory.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hooper, Amanda 1980 births 2011 deaths New Zealand female field hockey players Field hockey players at the 2002 Commonwealth Games People from North Canterbury People from Waikaia Deaths in earthquakes People associated with the 2011 Christchurch earthquake Natural disaster deaths in New Zealand People educated at Gore High School Commonwealth Games competitors for New Zealand Sportspeople from Canterbury, New Zealand 20th-century New Zealand women 21st-century New Zealand women