New Delhi: Indian tennis legend Vijay Amritraj was conferred with the Padma Bhushan, India’s fourth-highest civilian honour, as Padma Awards 2026 were announced on the eve of Republic Day on Sunday, January 25. Indian women’s cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur and former Indian men’s team captain Rohit Sharma have received the Padma Shri.
A total of eight sportspersons have been honoured in the Padma Awards 2026. Amritraj is the only sportsperson to be conferred with the Padma Bhushan, while the seven others received the Padma Shri for their contributions in their respective sporting disciplines.
Apart from Rohit and Harmanpreet, former Indian cricket team star Praveen Kumar has also been honoured with the Padma Shri. The former India pacer was part of the Indian team that won the 2010 Asia Cup under MS Dhoni. He played six Tests, 68 ODIs and 10 T20Is for India and picked up a total of 112 wickets across formats before retiring in 2018.
Complete list of sportspersons honoured in Padma Awards 2026:
Vijay Amritraj – Padma Bhushan
Baldev Singh – Padma Shri
Bhagwandas Raikwar – Padma Shri
Harmanpreet Kaur Bhullar – Padma Shri
K Pajanivel – Padma Shri
Praveen Kumar – Padma Shri
Rohit Sharma – Padma Shri
Savita Punia – Padma Shri
More to follow…