The National Sports Awards 2025 were announced by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports on Tuesday, August 18. 17 athletes will be receiving the Arjuna Award, while the list also included one lifetime Arjuna Award, but no sportsperson was selected for the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna.
The absence of a Khel Ratna recipient marks a notable change from the previous year, when four athletes received the country’s highest sporting honour.
The awards were finalised on the recommendations of a committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice (Retd.) Arun Kumar Mishra.
The Arjuna Award list features athletes from several disciplines. High jumper Tejaswin Shankar, sprinters Muhammed Ajmal V and Priyanka Goswami and badminton players Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand were among those recognised. Chess players Vidit Gujrathi and Divya Deshmukh also made the list, alongside hockey players Lalremsiami and Rajkumar Pal and shooter Akhil Sheoran.
Para-shooter Rudransh Khandelwal and para-athlete Ekta Bhyan were honoured as well. Rower Arvind Singh, boxer Narender, kabaddi players Surjeet and Pooja, and deaf shooter Dhanush Srikanth completed the 17-member list.
|
Sl. No. |
Name of the Sportsperson |
Discipline |
|
1. |
Shri Tejaswin Shankar |
Athletics |
|
2. |
Shri Muhammed Ajmal V |
Athletics |
|
3. |
Ms. Priyanka Goswami |
Athletics |
|
4. |
Ms.Treesa Jolly |
Badminton |
|
5. |
Ms Pullela Gayatri Gopichand |
Badminton |
|
6. |
Shri Narender |
Boxing |
|
7. |
Shri Vidit Santosh Gujarathi |
Chess |
|
8. |
Ms. Divya Jitendra Deshmukh |
Chess |
|
9. |
Shri Dhanush Srikanth |
Deaf shooting |
|
10. |
Ms. Lalremsiami |
Hockey |
|
11. |
Shri Rajkumar Pal |
Hockey |
|
12. |
Shri Surjeet |
Kabaddi |
|
13. |
Ms. Pooja |
Kabaddi |
|
14. |
Shri Rudransh Khandelwal |
Para-shooting |
|
15. |
Ms. Ekta Bhyan |
Para athletics |
|
16. |
Shri Arvind Singh |
Rowing |
|
17. |
Shri Akhil Sheoran |
Shooting |
The lifetime Arjuna Award went to former footballer I Arumainayagam. He was part of India’s gold medal-winning team at the 1962 Asian Games and also won the Durand Cup three times.
“The ‘Arjuna Award for outstanding performance in Sports and Games’ is given for good performance over a period of the previous four years and for showing qualities of leadership, sportsmanship and a sense of discipline,” a PIB release said.
The Khel Ratna, named after hockey great Major Dhyan Chand, had four recipients in 2024. Chess world champion Gukesh Dommaraju, hockey captain Harmanpreet Singh, para-athlete Praveen Kumar and Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker were honoured last year.
Gukesh received the award after becoming the youngest world chess champion in December 2024. Bhaker was recognised after becoming the first Indian athlete since independence to win two medals at one Olympic Games.
Dronacharya Award winners
Five coaches were also selected for Dronacharya Awards. Athletics coach Parveer Singh, boxing coach Chhote Lal Yadav and shooting coach Neha Nandkumar Chavan received the regular honour, while boxing coach Dharmendra Singh Yadav and wrestling coach Virender Kumar were recognised in the lifetime category.
“The ‘Dronacharya Award for outstanding coaches in Sports and Games’ is given to coaches for doing outstanding and meritorious work on a consistent basis and for enabling sportspersons to excel in International events,” the release added.
The Army Paralympic Node in Pune received the Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar for its contribution to promoting and developing sport.