Chanel Crizzle: India’s Rising Multi-Sport Star Making Her Mark in Rugby after Athletics and Football
In an era where athletes are often pushed toward early specialization, Chanel Crizzle stands out as a rare modern example of a true multi-sport athlete.
From representing India in rugby to competing nationally in football and athletics, the young athlete from Goa has steadily built a reputation as one of the country’s most versatile sporting talents. Most recently, Chanel served as the Vice-Captain of the Indian Women’s Rugby Team at the CASA 7s tournament in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, adding another major milestone to an already impressive sporting journey.
For Indian sports fans, her rise represents something increasingly valuable an athlete capable of excelling across multiple disciplines while still competing at elite international levels.
Chanel Crizzle’s latest achievement came with India’s participation at the Central & South Asia Sevens (CASA 7s) tournament in Uzbekistan in 2026. The tournament, officially recognized by Asia Rugby and World Rugby, brought together several emerging rugby nations from the region. Despite India fielding a relatively young squad, Chanel was entrusted with the role of Vice-Captain a significant sign of how highly she is regarded within the national setup.
India showed flashes of strong potential during the tournament. The side recorded dominant wins over Kyrgyzstan and Mongolia while also producing one of the standout results of the competition by defeating eventual champions Sri Lanka in a thrilling encounter. Although India eventually finished fourth, the tournament was viewed as an important developmental step for the squad, with Chanel playing a key leadership role throughout the campaign.
Before stepping into senior leadership, Chanel had already made her mark at the junior international level. She was part of the Indian Under-18 Women’s Rugby team that won silver at the Asia Rugby U18 Girls Sevens Championship in Uzbekistan in 2021. At just 16 years old, she emerged as one of the promising names in India’s growing rugby ecosystem.
A year later, she again represented India at the Asia Rugby Women’s U20 Sevens Championship, helping the team secure another silver medal. Consecutive podium finishes at continental tournaments highlighted both her consistency and her rapid development within the sport.
Her performances at youth level eventually helped fast-track her transition into the senior national setup.
What makes Chanel’s sporting profile even more remarkable is that rugby is not the only discipline where she has excelled. Before becoming a national rugby player, she had already established herself as a strong athlete in track and field. Representing Sharada Mandir School in Goa, Chanel created state records in shot put at both the Under-14 and Under-17 levels. She later won the Under-18 shot put title at the prestigious Manohar Parrikar Memorial State Athletics Meet with a throw of 10.47 metres.
She also demonstrated sprinting ability, clocking strong performances in the 100m sprint at state competitions. That blend of explosive strength and athletic movement later became one of her biggest advantages in rugby, especially in contact situations and open-field running.
Long before rugby became her primary sport, Chanel was already competing at the national level in football. She represented Goa in the Hero Sub-Junior Girls National Football Championship and was regarded as a technically strong and physically dynamic player. Her football background helped shape her understanding of movement, positioning, and spatial awareness all qualities that later translated effectively into rugby sevens.
The ability to adapt between sports is something rarely seen at elite levels today, making Chanel’s development pathway particularly unique in Indian sport. Her background in athletics developed explosive power. Football sharpened her endurance and decision-making. Rugby then combined those qualities into a high-performance contact sport. Rather than limiting herself to one pathway early, she built a complete athletic profile across disciplines.
Women’s rugby in India is still developing compared to global standards, but players like Chanel Crizzle are helping push the sport into wider public attention. The increasing number of international tournaments, structured camps, and exposure opportunities has slowly improved India’s competitiveness in Asia. Chanel’s journey also highlights how states like Goa are becoming important contributors to India’s sporting ecosystem beyond traditional disciplines like football.
Her rise from school competitions to continental rugby tournaments shows how talent from smaller sporting centres can now progress onto the international stage with the right support system.
Still only in the early phase of her senior career, Chanel Crizzle appears to have enormous long-term potential. With experience already gained at U18, U20, and senior international levels along with her rare multi-sport athletic background she could become one of the defining faces of Indian women’s rugby over the next decade. More importantly, her story serves as inspiration for young Indian athletes who dream of succeeding across multiple sports rather than being forced into early specialization.
In a country constantly searching for elite sporting role models outside cricket, Chanel Crizzle’s journey stands out as one built on versatility, resilience, and relentless athletic ambition.
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