National Sports Awards 2024: Manu Bhaker among four athletes to be conferred with Khel Ratna

Olympic shooting sensation Manu Bhaker is among four distinguished athletes named for the prestigious Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award 2024. The announcement, made on Thursday, January 2, as part of the National Sports Awards 2024, highlights her stellar performances at the Paris Olympics 2024.

Joining Bhaker in receiving India’s highest sporting honor are Indian men’s hockey captain Harmanpreet Singh, teenage chess prodigy Dommaraju Gukesh, and para-athlete Praveen Kumar. These athletes will be honored by the President of India in a grand ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on January 17, 2025.

Manu Bhaker’s extraordinary achievements at the Paris Olympics 2024 earned her a well-deserved spot among India’s sporting elite. She secured a bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol and followed it up with another bronze in the 10m air pistol mixed team event alongside Sarabjot Singh to become the first Indian post-independence to win multiple medals in a single Olympic Games.

Harmanpreet Singh, the talismanic captain of the Indian men’s hockey team, led from the front at the Paris Olympics 2024. Under his leadership, India secured a bronze medal for the second consecutive time. Harmanpreet’s 10 goals, the highest by any player in the men’s hockey tournament, were pivotal in India’s campaign.

Dommaraju Gukesh, all of 18, made headlines in December 2024 by defeating Ding Liren to become the youngest world chess champion. The victory in Singapore capped off a stellar year, which also saw him as part of the Indian team that triumphed at the Chess Olympiad.

Para-athlete Praveen Kumar’s performance at the Paris Paralympics 2024 was nothing short of extraordinary. He clinched gold in the men’s high jump T64 category, setting a new Asian record with a leap of 2.08m.

The National Sports Awards 2024 also honored several other athletes and coaches across various disciplines. The Arjuna Award recognized talents like Jyothi Yarraji and Annu Rani (Athletics), Sarabjot Singh (Shooting), and Aman Sehrawat (Wrestling), while the Dronacharya Award celebrated coaching stalwarts such as Subhash Rana (Para-Shooting) and S. Muralidharan (Badminton).

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National Sports Awards 2024: Complete List of all winners

Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award 2024 winners

• Gukesh D - Chess
• Harmanpreet Singh - Hockey
• Praveen Kumar - Para-Athletics
• Manu Bhaker - Shooting

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Arjuna Award 2024 winners

• Jyothi Yarraji - Athletics
• Annu Rani - Athletics
• Nitu Ghanghas - Boxing
• Saweety Boora - Boxing
• Vantika Agrawal - Chess
• Salima Tete - Hockey
• Abhishek - Hockey
• Sanjay - Hockey
• Jarmanpreet Singh - Hockey
• Sukhjeet Singh - Hockey
• Rakesh Kumar - Para-Archery
• Preeti Pal - Para-Athletics
• Jeevanji Deepthi - Para-Athletics
• Ajeet Singh - Para-Athletics
• Sachin Sarjerao Khilari - Para-Athletics
• Dharambir - Para-Athletics
• Pranav Soorma - Para-Athletics
• Hokato Hotozhe Sema - Para-Athletics
• Simran Sharma - Para-Athletics
• Navdeep Singh - Para-Athletics
• Nitesh Kumar - Para-Badminton
• Thulasimathi Murugesan - Para-Badminton
• Nithya Sre Sivan - Para-Badminton
• Manisha Ramadass - Para-Badminton
• Kapil Parmar - Para-Judo
• Mona Agarwal - Para-Shooting
• Rubina Francis - Para-Shooting
• Swapnil Kusale - Shooting
• Sarabjot Singh - Shooting
• Abhay Singh - Squash
• Sajan Prakash - Swimming
• Aman Sehrawat - Wrestling

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Arjuna Awards (Lifetime) 2024 winners

• Sucha Singh - Athletics
• Murlikant Petkar - Para-Swimming

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Dronacharya Award 2024 winners

Regular Category

• Subhash Rana - Para-Shooting
• Deepali Deshpande - Shooting
• Sandeep Sangwan - Hockey

Lifetime Category

• S Muralidharan - Badminton
• Armando Colaco - Football