National Sports Awards of India

National Sports Awards of India

• As the name suggests, the National Sports Awards of India are presented to sportspersons for their outstanding performance and excellence in sports.
• The National Sports Awards of India is the combined name given to six different awards given to sportspersons of India by the Central Government.
• The sports awards are given annually by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
• They are presented by the President of India in the ceremony at the Presidential Palace, on 29 August – National Sports Day – which marks the birthday of Indian hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand.
• A total of 1,259 individuals and organizations have been awarded the various National Sports Awards as of 2020.
• Apart from the six National Sports Awards described below, the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award is also given alongside the other sports awards since 2004.

List of Sports Awards

• The most renowned national sports awards are described as follows:

 

 

 

 

Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award

• • The Khel Ratna Award, officially known as the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, formerly known as the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award in Sports and Games, is the highest sporting honour of India.
  • It is the most prestigious national sports award that a sportsperson can get from the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in India.
  • The Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award was instituted in the year 1991-92.
  • The award from 1991-2021 was named after Rajiv Gandhi, former Prime Minister of India. The award since August 6, 2021 is named after Major Dhyan Chand, an Indian field hockey player, widely regarded as one of the greatest field hockey players of all time.
  • It is given for the “most outstanding performance by a sportsperson” over the period of the last four years.
  • It comprises a medallion, a certificate, and a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh.
  • The famous chess player, Vishwanathan Anand became the first sportsman to receive the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award for his performance and achievements in chess from the year 1992 to 1993.
  • In 2001, sport shooter Abhinav Bindra, then aged 18, became the youngest recipient of the award.
  • Olympic bronze medal-winning weightlifter Karnam Malleswari was the first Indian woman to receive the Khel Ratna in 1994-95.

Arjuna Award

• • The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India.
  • Arjuna Award was introduced in the year 1961, which makes it the oldest national sports award in India.
  • It is conferred by the Ministry of Youth Affairs to sportspersons who have consistently given outstanding performances for at least four years in a row in national and international games.
  • The award is named after Arjuna, a famous archer in the Mahabharata.
  • The award comprises a bronze statuette of Arjuna, a scroll of honour and a cash prize of Rs. 15 lakh.
  • There are a total of 20 first recipients of the Arjuna award in 1961, namely Saleem Durrani in Cricket, Sarabjeet Singh in Basketball, Manuel Aaron in Chess, Gurucharan Singh Randhawa in Athletics, Nandu Natekar in Badminton, and LB D’souza in Boxing.
  • Hockey player Anna Lumsden was the first woman Arjuna Award winner in 1961.

Dronacharya Award

• • This award is not for the players. It is for the coaches who train and prepare and guide the players to achieve big in sports.
  • The Dronacharya Award was instituted in 1985 by the Government of India to recognise excellence in sports coaching. It is awarded annually by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
  • It is named after Guru Dronacharya, who was the teacher of Pandavas in Mahabharata.
  • Recipients are selected on the basis of “outstanding and meritorious work on a consistent basis and enabled sportspersons to excel in international events” over a period of four years.
  • It is awarded to coaches for their efforts, training, and guidance in producing medal winners for the country in national and international level sports events such as the Olympics, commonwealth games, etc.
  • The award carries a cash prize of Rs 15 lakh, a bronze statue of Dronacharya and a scroll of honour.
  • The first recipients of the Dronocharya award in 1985 include Bhalachandra Bhaskar Bhagwat – a wrestling coach, O.M. Nambiar – an Athletic coach, Om Prakash Bhardwaj – Boxing coach.
  • Furthermore, the first foreign coach in India who received the Dronacharya award is B.I. Fernandez.
  • The first woman to win the Dronacharya award was athletics coach Renu Kohli in 2002.

Dhyan Chand Award

• • The Major Dhyan Chand Award, officially known as Major Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sports and Games, is the lifetime achievement sporting honour of the India.
  • It is the most prestigious sporting award that is conferred annually by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports for lifetime achievement.
  • The Dhyan Chand Award was instituted in the year 2002 and comprises a Dhyan Chand statuette, a cash prize of Rs 10 lakh, a certificate and a ceremonial dress.
  • It is given to individuals for “lifetime contribution to sports development“. The awardee for this award are selected after considering their contribution to sports during their sport career and after their retirement.
  • The first recipients of the award were Shahuraj Birajdar (Boxing), Ashok Diwan (Hockey), and Aparna Ghosh (Basketball), who were honoured in 2002.
  • The first Female recipient of the Dhyan Chand Award is Aparna Ghosh in the field of Basketball.

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy

• • The Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy was instituted in the year 1956 – 1957.
  • Named in respect of Indian freedom fighter and the country’s first education minister Abul Kalam Azad, the award is given to the University for Top Performance in inter-university tournaments over the last one year.
  • This award is for university-level sports performances. It is given to a university for “top performance in the inter-university tournaments” over the period of the last one year.
  • It is a rolling trophy awarded to the “overall top performing University in sports and promoting competitive sports in University” over the preceding year.
  • The award for the university securing first position comprises a rolling trophy and a cash prize of Rs. 15 lakh. The second and third place universities receive cash prizes of Rs. 7.5 lakh and Rs. 4.5 lakh respectively.
  • The objective of the trophy is to promote competitive sports, excellence in sports, and integrating sports and physical fitness amongst the Indian colleges and universities.
  • The trophy has been awarded a total of 64 times as of 2020.
  • Bombay University claimed the inaugural award but since then, the Guru Nanak Dev University from Amritsar, Punjab, has dominated the winners’ list, clinching 22 of the 64 awards given out.

Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar

• • The Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar was instituted in the year 2009.
  • This award is given to both individuals as well as private or public organisations for “playing a visible role in the area of sports promotion and development” over the period of last three years.
  • Nominees are decided in four different segments –
    • • • Identification and nurturing of budding and young talent,
        • Encouragement to sports through corporate social responsibility,
        • Employment of sportspersons and sports welfare measures, and
        • Sports for development.
  • As of 2020, a total of 47 awards have been bestowed on 39 different organizations and individuals.

 

Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award

• • The Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award, formerly known as the National Adventure Awards is the highest adventure sports honour of the Republic of India.
  • Tenzing Norgay, an Indian of Nepali origin, and Kiwi mountaineer Edmund Hillary were the first two men to scale Mount Everest – the world’s highest peak.
  • Established in Norgay’s memory in the year 1994, the Award seeks to recognise outstanding achievements in the field of adventure sports on land, sea and air.
  • The award comprises “a bronze statuette of Tenzing Norgay, certificate, blazer with silken tie/saree, and a cash prize of ₹5 lakh.
  • The adventure sports equivalent of the Arjuna Award, the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure awards have been conferred alongside the six core national awards since 2004. Before the award was established, accomplishments in adventure sports were also honoured with the Arjuna Award.
  • Typically, the award is divided into four categories each year –
    • • • Land adventure,
        • Water adventure,
        • Air adventure and
        • Lifetime achievement.
  • As of 2020, there have been 139 recipients. In the first year 1994, 22 awards were given, out of which 19 were given to the Indian members of the 1993 Indo-Nepalese Women’s Everest Expedition.
  • Chandraprabha Aitwal is the only double recipient of the award, once in 1994 for land adventure and second time in 2009 for lifetime achievement.

 

So, this is all about the post on the National Sports Awards of India – Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, Arjun Award, Dronacharya Award, Dhyan Chand Award and Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award. If you want to read more notes on Awards and Honors – Click Here.

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