New Delhi, Dec 24 (NationPress) Two-time Olympic bronze medallist Hardik Singh has been nominated for the esteemed Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, recognized as the pinnacle award for athletes by the government. Additionally, athletes including Tejaswin Shankar, Priyanka, chess grandmaster Vidit Santosh Gujarati, and Divya Deshmukh, as well as shooters Akhil Sheron and Mehuli Ghosh, along with the women's badminton duo Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, have been recommended for the Arjuna Award by the committee established by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports this Wednesday.

The panel convened in New Delhi and has put forth the name of the 27-year-old midfielder, Hardik, for this distinguished honor due to his significant contributions to the Indian hockey team over the past two years. He played a crucial part in securing bronze medals for India at both the Tokyo and Paris Olympic Games and was also integral to the Indian team's victories at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou and the 2025 Asia Cup in Rajgir.

Hailing from Khusropur in Punjab, Hardik has been a key player for the Indian men’s hockey team, earning 166 caps while being employed by the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC). Historically, only six hockey players have been awarded the Khel Ratna, including Dhanraj Pillay (1999-2000), Sardar Singh (2017), Rani Rampal (2020), PR Sreejesh (2021), Manpreet Singh (2021), and Harmanpreet Singh (2024).

Sources indicate that Hardik was the sole nominee from the panel. Many were surprised that no member of the Indian women’s cricket team, which made headlines by clinching their first Women's ODI World Cup title last month, was included in the recommendations.

Interestingly, last year, Harmanpreet Singh, the Indian men’s hockey captain, was honored with the Khel Ratna alongside two-time Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker, chess prodigy Gukesh D, and para-athlete Praveen Kumar.

The selection committee also put forth 24 athletes for the Arjuna Awards, one of whom is Aarti Pal, recognized as the first yogasana athlete to receive this recommendation.

Aarti is the reigning national and Asian champion in yogasana, which will be showcased as a demonstration sport at the Asian Games in Japan next year.

Among the recommended athletes are rifle shooter Mehuli Ghosh, gymnast Pranati Nayak, and the leading women's badminton pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand. Polo star Padmanabh Singh, along with Sonam Malik (wrestling), Sutirtha Mukherjee (table tennis), Rudransh Khandelwal (para-shooting), Olympian rower Arvind Singh, and Ekta Bhyan (para-athletics), have also been put forward for recognition.

Significantly, no cricketer is included in this year’s recommendations. The last cricketer to receive the Arjuna Award was Mohammed Shami in 2023.

The committee did not propose any candidates for the Dronacharya Award or the Dhyan Chand Lifetime Award.

The full list of recommendations:

Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award: Hardik Singh (hockey)

Arjuna Award: Tejaswin Shankar (athletics), Priyanka (athletics), Narender (boxing), Vidit Gujrathi (chess), Divya Deshmukh (chess), Dhanush Srikanth (deaf shooting), Pranati Nayak (gymnastics), Rajkumar Pal (hockey), Surjeet (kabaddi), Nirmala Bhati (kho kho), Rudransh Khandelwal (para-shooting), Ekta Bhyan (para-athletics), Padmanabh Singh (polo), Arvind Singh (rowing), Akhil Sheoran (shooting), Mehuli Ghosh (shooting), Sutirtha Mukherjee (table tennis), Sonam Malik (wrestling), Aarti Pal (yogasana), Treesa Jolly (badminton), Gayatri Gopichand (badminton), Lalremsiami (hockey), Mohammed Afsal (athletics), Pooja (kabaddi).