Karri Somerville

Karri Somerville, a talented defender, was a member of the Australian U21 team at the 2016 World Cup in Chile, where the Jillaroos walked away with the bronze medal.

The young gun’s call up to the seniors was momentarily put on hold in 2018 due to an ACL rupture and meniscal tear, however, a determined Karri continued to build her skills on and off the field.

In March 2020 all her hard work paid off when she made her Hockeyroos debut on home soil, playing in the FIH Pro League against Argentina.

A regular member of the Perth Thundersticks, the WA athlete is also a keen indoor hockey player and played in the 2018 Indoor World Cup in Berlin.

Karri made her Olympic debut at the delayed Tokyo Games in 2021. As a testament to her defensive prowess, Australia boasted an impressive group stage record, going undefeated and only conceding one goal in their five opening matches. The Hockeyroos fell short in the quarter-finals of the tournament, where they lost a tense match to India 1-0 earning them fifth overall.

The following year, Karri was part of the Hockeyroos team that won bronze at the FIH Women’s World Cup and silver at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

The Hockeyroos were undefeated in the pool games in Birmingham and after beating India in a penalty shootout in the semi-final, they went down to England 2-1 in the gold medal game. Karri played a key role in the campaign despite suffering a gruesome cut to her face when an errant high ball struck her above the right eye in the India game.

Despite missing a large part of 2023 with a knee injury, Karri was back in the side for the Oceania Cup series, where her calm and composed defence was key to the Hockeyroos clinching victory and a place at the Paris Olympics.

At the Paris 2024 Olympics Karri and the Hockeyroos opened their tournament with three-straight wins against South Africa (2-1), Great Britain (4-0) and the United States (3-0).

A draw with Argentina (3-3) and a win against Spain (3-1) closed the group stage, with the Hockeyroos advancing into a quarter-final against China. Coached by Australian Olympic champion Alyson Annan, China prevailed 3-2 to end the Hockeyroos' campaign.

Away from the hockey field, Karri is a physiotherapist with a particular interest in sporting and lower limb injuries.