President Ram Nath Kovind presented the National Sports Awards 2021 at an event in Rashtrapati Bhavan on Saturday. The Olympic champion javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, the experienced cricketer Mithali Raj and historical Paralympics stars received Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, who was one of the first awards of the evening belonged to.
In a glittering ceremony in the Durbar Hall of Rashtrapati Bhawan, the President paid tribute to the country’s unparalleled Olympic and Paralympic achievements. The event became a personal matter this time after it went online the previous year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur was present at the ceremony along with a number of other dignitaries, including his predecessor Kiren Rijiju.
The main attraction of the evening was Chopra, who accepted his Khel Ratna Prize to thunderous applause from the selected dignitaries at the specially organized event.
Chopra was the first among the Khel Ratna Prize winners to receive this honor.
In addition to the 23-year-old star, the Olympic bronze winner Manpreet Singh, the experienced goalkeeper PR Sreejesh, the Olympic silver medalist Ravi Dahiya, the Olympic bronze boxer Lovlina Borgohain. awarded the Khel Ratna award and Mithali.
Sunil Chhetri became the first footballer to be awarded this award, a well-deserved recognition for keeping up with players like Lionel Messi in scoring international goals.
The Paralympic gold winners Avani Lekhara (shooting), Sumit Antil (athletics), Pramod Bhagat (badminton), Krishna Nagar (badminton), Manish Narwal (shooting) also received the Khel Ratna.
LIVE: President Kovind presents National Sports Awards 2021 at Rashtrapati Bhavan https://t.co/Tseh3ckW11
– President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) November 13, 2021
In addition to 12 Khel Ratnas, India has 35 Arjuna Prize winners this year. The long list this year was the result of historic medal wins at the Olympics (7) and Paralympics (19).
The event traditionally takes place on August 29th each year to commemorate the birthday of hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand.
The Khel Ratna Award comes with a cash prize of Rs 25 Lakh, a medal and a roll of honor.
The Arjuna Prize comes with a cash prize of Rs 15 lakh, a bronze statue and a roll of honor.
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