Five sportspersons will be honoured with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna this year. This is the first time in the history of National Sports Awards that five athletes have been recommended for the top sporting accolade. In 2016, four athletes were collectively given this award.
Also, 27 will be conferred with the Arjuna award this year.
How were the awards finalised?
A large number of applications were received for Sports Awards this year, which were considered by the selection committee headed by Justice (Retd.) Mukundakam Sharma and other members comprising eminent sportspersons, persons having experience in sports journalism and sports administration, etc. Based on the recommendations of the committee and after due scrutiny, the government has decided to confer awards under various categories.
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award
It was launched in 1991-92. A medallion along with a cash award of Rs 7.5 lakh is given to sportsperson for his/her spectacular and most outstanding performance over a period of four years immediately preceding the year during which the award is to be given.
This year’s winners:
Rohit Sharma - Cricket
Mariyappan Thangavelu - Para Athletics
Manika Batra - Table Tennis
Vinesh Phogat - Wrestling
Rani Rampal - Hockey
Rohit Sharma will be the fourth cricketer after Sachin Tendulkar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Virat Kohli to be conferred with the Khel Ratna.
Vinesh Phogat has been rewarded for her gold medals in the 2018 Commonwealth and Asian Games, besides a bronze in the 2019 Asian Wrestling Championships.
Thangavelu is being rewarded for his gold medal in the 2016 Rio Paralympics in the T42 high jump category. T42 applies to athletes with single above the knee amputations or a disability that is comparable.
Paddler Manika Batra was recommended for her remarkable performance in 2018, a year during which she won the Commonwealth Games gold medal and Asian Games bronze in women's singles.
Rani Rampal is Indian women’s hockey team captain. Before Rani, only Dhanraj Pillay (2000) and Sardar Singh (2017) won the prestigious award.
Arjuna Award
It was instituted in 1961 and is given to players who have exhibited good performance consistently for the previous four years at the international level and have shown qualities of leadership, sportsmanship and a sense of discipline. The awardees are given a statuette, a scroll of honour, ceremonial dress and award money of Rs 5 lakh.
This year’s winners:
Atanu Das - Archery
Dutee Chand - Athletics
Satwik Sairaj Rankireddy - Badminton
Chirag Chandrasekhar Shetty - Badminton
Vishesh Bhriguvanshi - Basketball
Manish Kaushik - Boxing
Lovlina Borgohain - Boxing
Ishant Sharma - Cricket
Deepti Sharma - Cricket
Sawant Ajay Anant - Equestrian
Sandesh Jhingan - Football
Aditi Ashok - Golf
Akashdeep Singh - Hockey
Deepika Thakur - Hockey
Deepak Hooda - Kabaddi
Kale Sarika Sudhakar - Kho Kho
Dattu Baban Bhokanal - Rowing
Manu Bhaker - Shooting
Saurabh Chaudhary - Shooting
Madhurika Suhas Patkar - Table Tennis
Divij Sharan - Tennis
Shiva Keshavan - Winter Sports
Divya Kakran - Wrestling
Rahul Aware - Wrestling
Suyash Narayan Jadhav - Para Swimming
Sandeep Chaudhary - Para Athletics
Manish Narwal - Para Shooting
Dronacharya Award
It was instituted in 1985. This award honours eminent coaches who have assisted national athletes and teams in achieving outstanding results in international competitions. The awardees are given a statuette, certificate, ceremonial dress and a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh.
This year’s winners:
Life-Time Category
Dharmendra Tiwary - Archery
Purushotham Rai - Athletics
Shiv Singh - Boxing
Romesh Pathania - Hockey
Krishan Kumar Hooda - Kabaddi
Vijay Bhalchandra Munishwar - Para Powerlifting
Naresh Kumar - Tennis
Om Parkash Dahiya - Wrestling
Regular Category
Jude Felix Sebastian - Hockey
Yogesh Malviya - Mallakhamb
Jaspal Rana - Shooting
Kuldeep Kumar Handoo - Wushu
Gaurav Khanna - Para Badminton
Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sports and Games
It was instituted in 2002. This award is given to honour those who have contributed to sports by their performance and continue to contribute to promotion of sports even after their retirement from an active sporting career. The awardees are given a statuette, a certificate, ceremonial dress and award money of Rs 5 lakh.
This year’s winners:
Kuldip Singh Bhullar - Athletics
Jincy Philips - Athletics
Pradeep Shrikrishna Gandhe - Badminton
Trupti Murgunde - Badminton
N. Usha - Boxing
Lakha Singh - Boxing
Sukhvinder Singh Sandhu - Football
Ajit Singh - Hockey
Manpreet Singh - Kabaddi
J. Ranjith Kumar - Para Athletics
Satyaprakash Tiwari - Para Badminton
Manjeet Singh - Rowing
Sachin Nag - Swimming (Posthumous)
Nandan P. Bal - Tennis
Netarpal Hooda - Wrestling
Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Awards
It is the highest national recognition for outstanding achievements in the field of adventure on land, sea and air. A cash Award of Rs 5 lakh and a certificate of honour is given to each awardee. This Award is at par with the Arjuna Award for sporting excellence.
This year’s winners:
Anita Devi - Land Adventure
Col. Sarfraz Singh - Land Adventure
Taka Tamut - Land Adventure
Narender Singh - Land Adventure
Keval Hiren Kakka - Land Adventure
Satendra Singh - Water Adventure
Gajanand Yadava - Air Adventure
Magan Bissa - Life Time Achievement (posthumous)
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Trophy
With a view to promote competitive sports in colleges and universities, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Trophy with a cash award of Rs 10 lakh is given to the University standing first in inter-university sports tournaments.
This year’s winner:
Panjab University, Chandigarh.
Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar
With a view to recognise the contribution made to sports development by entities other than sportspersons and coaches, the government has instituted an award since 2009 entitled Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar, which has four categories.
This year’s winners are:
1) Identification and nurturing of budding and young talent - Lakshya Institute Army Sports Institute
2) Encouragement to sports through Corporate Social Responsibility - Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Ltd.
3) Employment of sportspersons and sports welfare measures - Air Force Sports Control Board
4) Sports for development - International Institute of Sports Management (IISM).
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