New Delhi, Jan 2: The Indian shooting fraternity was overjoyed on Thursday as the government decided to confer acclaimed rifle coach Deepali Deshpande with the prestigious Dronacharya award for coaches, while pistol ace Manu Bhaker was nominated for the highest sports award, Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna for athletes.
As an indicator of the sport’s success in 2024, rifle shooter Swapnil Kusale and pistol ace Sarabjot Singh were shortlisted for the coveted Arjuna Award, listed among the 32 sportspersons nominated for the prestigious award.
The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports communique, while mentioning that the awardees will be honoured on January 17, released a list of 43 eminent sportspersons and coaches who made the cut for this year’s National Sports Awards.
Four among them, including Manu, who created history at the Paris Olympics last year by becoming the first Indian athlete to win two medals at a single Olympics, will be conferred with the Khel Ratna, the highest sporting honour of the country.
World Chess Champion D. Gukesh, hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh, and para-athlete Praveen Kumar are the others to receive the Khel Ratna. Deepali Deshpande, a former national rifle coach, was also among three coaches who will be honoured with the Dronacharya Award for Outstanding Coaches.
Swapnil and Sarabjot were among 32 able-bodied and para-athletes who will be honoured with the coveted Arjuna Award. Reflecting the joy of the shooting fraternity, Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo, President, National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), said, “Never before have so many from the shooting family been honoured with the highest sporting awards of the land. It is a testament to the world-class levels attained by Indian shooting as a whole. On behalf of the entire fraternity, I convey my best wishes to all the awardees and their loved ones. The New Year could not have begun on a happier note for us.”
K. Sultan Singh, Secretary General, NRAI, was also effusive in his praise for the awardees stating, “All four award recipients of our sport have consistently shone on the world stage with either their own performances or that of their wards. They have kept the tri-colour flying high on the sport’s highest platforms and will inspire many many more from the country to do the same in the future. Nobody deserves them more than Deepali, Manu, Swapnil and Sarabjot and we wish them all the very best for the future. I am sure this will help them reach even greater heights going forward.”
Shooting also bagged the second-highest number of awards among able-bodied sports after hockey, which bagged as many as seven across categories.
IANS