National Sports Awards 2024 Announced

The Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports has announced the prestigious National Sports Awards for 2024, recognizing outstanding sportspersons, coaches, universities, and entities for their exemplary contributions to sports. The awardees will receive their honors from the President of India at Rashtrapati Bhavan on January 17, 2025. These awards aim to motivate and acknowledge the dedication, performance, and progress made by individuals and institutions in the realm of sports.

National Sports Awards 2024 Recipients

1. Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award 2024

Given For: Awarded for the most outstanding performance in sports over the past four years.

Sr. No	Name of Recipient	Discipline
1	Shri Gukesh D	(Chess)
2	Shri Harmanpreet Singh	(Hockey)
3	Shri Praveen Kumar	(Para-Athletics)
4	Ms. Manu Bhaker	(Shooting)

2. Arjuna Awards for Outstanding Performance in Sports 2024

Given For: Awarded for excellence in sports and showing leadership, sportsmanship, and discipline.

Sr. No	Name of Recipient	Discipline
1	Ms. Jyothi Yarraji	(Athletics)
2	Ms. Annu Rani	(Athletic)
3	Ms. Nitu	(Boxing)
4	Ms. Saweety	(Boxing)
5	Ms. Vantika Agrawal	(Chess)
6	Ms. Salima Tete	(Hockey)
7	Shri Abhishek	(Hockey)
8	Shri Sanjay	(Hockey)
9	Shri Jarmanpreet Singh	(Hockey)
10	Shri Sukhjeet Singh	(Hockey)
11	Shri Rakesh Kumar	(Para-Archery)
12	Ms. Preeti Pal	(Para-Athletics)
13	Ms. Jeevanji Deepthi	(Para-Athletics)
14	Shri Ajeet Singh	(Para-Athletics)
15	Shri Sachin Sarjerao Khilari	(Para-Athletics)
16	Shri Dharambir	(Para-Athletics)
17	Shri Pranav Soorma	(Para-Athletics)
18	Shri H Hokato Sema	(Para-Athletics)
19	Ms. Simran	(Para-Athletics)
20	Shri Navdeep	(Para-Athletics)
21	Shri Nitesh Kumar	(Para-Badminton)
22	Ms. Thulasimathi Murugesan	(Para-Badminton)
23	Ms. Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivan	(Para-Badminton)
24	Shri Sajan Prakash	(Swimming)
25	Shri Aman	(Wrestling)
26	Ms. Manisha Ramadass	(Para-Badminton)
27	Shri Kapil Parmar	(Para-Judo)
28	Ms. Mona Agarwal	(Para-Shooting)
29	Ms. Rubina Francis	(Para-Shooting)
30	Shri Swapnil Suresh Kusale	(Shooting)
31	Shri Sarabjot Singh	(Shooting)
32	Shri Abhay Singh	(Squash)

3. Arjuna Awards (Lifetime) for Outstanding Performance in Sports 2024

Given For: Awarded to retired sportspersons who continue to contribute to the promotion of sports.

Sr. No	Name of Recipient	Discipline
1	Shri Sucha Singh	(Athletics)
2	Shri Murlikant Rajaram Petkar	(Para-Swimming)

4. Dronacharya Award for Outstanding Coaches in Sports and Games 2024

Given For: Awarded for consistent excellence in coaching and enabling athletes to excel in international events.

Regular Category

Sr. No	Name of Recipient	Discipline
1	Shri Subhash Rana	(Para-Shooting)
2	Ms. Deepali Deshpande	(Shooting)
3	Shri Sandeep Sangwan	(Hockey)

Lifetime Category

Sr. No	Name of Recipient	Discipline
1	Shri S Muralidharan	(Badminton)
2	Shri Armando Agnelo Colaco	(Football)

5. Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar

Given For: Awarded to entities that have made significant contributions to the promotion of sports in the country.

Sr. No	Name of the Entity
1	Physical Education Foundation of India

6. Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Trophy 2024

Given For: Awarded to the top-performing university in the Khelo India University Games.

Sr. No	Position	Name of University
1	Overall Winner University	Chandigarh University
2	1st Runner Up University	Lovely Professional University, (PB)
3	2nd Runner Up University	Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar

About The National Sports Awards

• Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award is the highest honor, given for exceptional performance in the field of sports.
• Arjuna Award recognizes outstanding performance in sports, leadership, sportsmanship, and discipline.
• Arjuna Award (Lifetime) is for sportspersons who continue to contribute to sports after retirement.
• Dronacharya Award honors coaches who have consistently helped athletes excel at international levels.
• Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Trophy is awarded to the university with the best performance in the Khelo India University Games.

Selections

• The applications for the awards were invited online, and sportspersons, coaches, and entities self-applied through a dedicated portal.
• A committee chaired by Justice (Retd.) V. Ramasubramanian of the Supreme Court, along with eminent sportspersons, sports journalists, and administrators, assessed the applications and selected the awardees.

Significance

• These awards celebrate the immense contributions of individuals and institutions in advancing sports excellence and aim to inspire future generations of athletes and sports professionals.