Marsha Cox (née Marescia; born 13 January 1983 in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...

) 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 a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...

player from

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, who was a member of the national squad that finished 9th at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

. The midfielder comes from

, and is

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

d ''Nator''. She plays for the provincial team Southern Gauteng.

International career

Marsha is the South African team captain. She made her début in October 2001 at the age of 18 and has since gone on to represent her country at three Olympic Games and two World Cups, earning over 300 caps. She has also competed at four Commonwealth Games, and was part of the South African team that finished in 4th place at the

2014 Commonwealth Games The 2014 Commonwealth Games ( gd, Geamannan a' Cho-fhlaitheis 2014), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014, ( sco, Glesca 2014 or Glesga 2014; gd, Glaschu 2014), was an international multi-sport ev ...

. She has been selected for the IHF World XI three times (2007, 2009 and 2010).

Personal life

Marsha is the daughter of hockey coach and former player Marian Marescia, described by many as the best player to not have played for South Africa, due to

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

. Marsha attended

Northlands Girls' High School Northlands Girls High School 'NGHS' is an all-girls school situated in the suburb of Durban North, South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is b ...

Durban North Durban North is an area to the north of Durban in the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Durban North lies between the N2 freeway and the eastern seashore, with the Umgeni River forming its southern boundary. It ha ...

. Northlands Girls High school is now one of the best schools on the Durban area. In 2013 Marsha married Dutch hockey coach Alexander Cox.

International Senior tournaments

* 2002 – Champions Challenge (Johannesburg, South Africa) * 2002 –

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

(Manchester, UK) * 2002 –

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

(Perth, Australia) * 2003 –

All Africa Games The African Games, formally known as the All-Africa Games or the Pan African Games, are a continental multi-sport event held every four years, organized by the African Union (AU) with the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (AN ...

(Abuja, Nigeria) * 2003 –

Afro-Asian Games The Afro-Asian Games were the series of inter-continental multi-sport competitions, held between athletes from Asia and Africa. These Games are one-of-a-kind, since no other sporting competition brings athletes from these two continents together ...

(Hyderabad, India) * 2004 –

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

(Athens, Greece) * 2005 – Champions Challenge (Virginia Beach, United States) * 2006 –

(Melbourne, Australia) * 2006 –

(Madrid, Spain) * 2008 –

(Beijing, PR China) * 2009 – Champions Challenge (Cape Town, South Africa) * 2010 –

(Rosario, Argentina) * 2010 –

(New Delhi, India) * 2011 – Champions Challenge (Dublin, Ireland) * 2011 –

(Bulawayo, Zimbabwe) * 2012 – Women's Olympic Qualifier (New Delhi, India) * 2012 –

(London, Great Britain) * 2014 –

(Glasgow, Great Britain)

References

External links

* *
SAHO – Marsha Cox, the South African hockey player is born
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cox, Marsha 1983 births Living people South African female field hockey players Olympic field hockey players of South Africa Field hockey players at the 2004 Summer Olympics Field hockey players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Durban Field hockey players at the 2012 Summer Olympics Field hockey players at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Field hockey players at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Field hockey players at the 2010 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games competitors for South Africa Field hockey players at the 2014 Commonwealth Games NMHC Nijmegen players SV Kampong players Competitors at the 2003 All-Africa Games African Games competitors for South Africa