Neeraj Chopra, Avani Lekhara, Mithali Raj Among 12 2021 Khel Ratna Awardees

Neeraj Chopra is among 12 sportspersons set to be conferred the Khel Ratna this year.

Indian javelin star, and the only track-and-field Olympic gold medallist from the country, Neeraj Chopra is among 12 sportspersons who will be conferred the country's highest sporting honor- the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, this year.

The felicitation ceremony will take place on 13 November at the Rashtrapati Bhawan with the President of India handing out the awards at the Darbar Hall.

Tokyo Olympics medallists Ravi Kumar (wrestling), Lovlina Borgohain (boxing), men's hockey captain Manpreet Singh (hockey) and Sreejesh PR (hockey) are the other stars from the games this summer to be conferred the honour.

Tokyo Paralympics medallists Avani Lekhara (shooting), Sumit Antil (javelin), Pramod Bhagat (badminton), Krishna Nagar (badminton), Manish Narwal (shooting) have also been selected for the Khel Ratna award.

Indian cricketer Mithali Raj and men's football captain Sunil Chhetri have also been selected for the honour.

The Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award is the highest sports honour awarded by the government and is given for outstanding performances in the field of sports while the Arjuna Award is to recognise consistent performances and qualities like leadership and discipline. Both awards consider performances over a period of four years and include a trophy, a citation, and a cash award.

The original list of sportspersons initially recommended for the Khel Ratna by the selection committee comprised only 11 names, with men's hockey captain Manpreet Singh added to the final list by the Government.

Apart from the Khel Ratna, 35 Indian sportspersons will be conferred the Arjuna award this year with 16 members (apart from Sreejesh and Manpreet) of the bronze medal-winning hockey team named in the list. Shikhar Dhawan is the only Indian cricketer to win an Arjuna award this year while the list also includes shooter Abhishek Verma, triple jumper Arpinder Singh, boxer Simranjit Kaur, fencer Bhavani Devi and Paralympics medallist Bhavina Patel.

Normally, the awards are given on 29 August, on the occasion of the National Sports Day, but this year they were deferred because of the Tokyo Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games.

Full List of 35 Arjuna Awardees

1. Arpinder Singh (athletics)

2. Simranjit Kaur (boxing)

3. Shikhar Dhawan(cricket)

4. Bhavani Devi Chadalavada Anandha Sundhararaman (fencing)

5. Monika (hockey)

6. Vandana Katariya (hockey)

7. Sandeep Narwal (kabaddi)

8. Himani Uttam Parab (mallakhamb)

9. Abhishek Verma (shooting)

10. Ankita Raina (tennis)

11. Deepak Punia (wrestling)

12. Dilpreet Singh (hockey)

13. Harman Preet Singh (hockey)

14. Rupinder Pal Singh (hockey)

15. Surender Kumar (hockey)

16. Amit Rohidas (hockey)

17. Birendra Lakra (hockey)

18. Sumit (hockey)

19. Nilakanta Sharma (hockey)

20. Hardik Singh (hockey)

21. Vivek Sagar Prasad (hockey)

22. Gurjant Singh(hockey)

23. Mandeep Singh (hockey)

24. Shamsher Singh (hockey)

25. Lalit Kumar Upadhyay (hockey)

26. Varun Kumar (hockey)

27. Simranjeet Singh (hockey)

28. Yogesh Kathuniya (para athletics)

29. Nishad Kumar (para athletics)

30. Praveen Kumar (para athletics)

31. Suhash Yathiraj (para badminton)

32. Singhraj Adhana (para shooting)

33. Bhavina Patel (para table-tennis)

34. Harvinder Singh (para archery)

35. Sharad Kumar (para athletics)

Dronacharya Award Winners

Radhakrishnan Nair (Athletics), Sandhya Gurung (Boxing), Pritam Siwach (Hockey), Jai Prakash Nautiyal (Para Shooting), Subramanian Raman (Table Tennis)

Dronacharya Lifetime Award Winners

TP Ouseph (Athletics), Sarkar Talwar (Cricket), Harpal Singh (Hockey), Ashan Kumar (Kabaddi), Tapan Kumar Panigrahi (Swimming)

Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sports

Lekha KC (Boxing), Abhijeet Kunte (Chess), Davinder Singh Garcha (Hockey), Vikas Kumar (Kabaddi), Sajjan Singh (Wrestling)

(With inputs from IANS)