No Khel Ratna Recipient for 2025
The Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, recognised as India‘s highest sporting honour, will not be awarded to any sportsperson for 2025. This marks only the third instance since the award’s inception in 1991-92 that no athlete has been selected, with previous occurrences in 2008 and 2014. The decision was made following recommendations from a high-level selection committee.
The National Sports Awards selection committee, led by retired Supreme Court judge Arun Kumar Mishra, forwarded its recommendations to Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya for final approval. The Sports Ministry subsequently announced the National Sports Awards 2025. The Khel Ratna award includes a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh, a medallion, and a citation.
During its meeting in New Delhi on December 12, 2025, the committee discussed the possibility of considering compound archer Jyothi Surekha Vennam and India‘s Women’s World Cup-winning cricket captain Harmanpreet Kaur, along with vice-captain Smriti Mandhana, for the Khel Ratna. However, none of these names were included in the final recommendations. The absence of a specific points-based system for assessing cricket performances was a factor in the discussions regarding the two leading Indian women cricketers, as the committee typically relies on nominations from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in such cases. No nominations were received for these cricketers. The last cricketer to receive the Khel Ratna was Mohammed Shami in 2023.
Arjuna Award Honours for 17 Athletes
While the top honour remained vacant, 17 sportspersons were named for the Arjuna Award, which recognises outstanding performance in sports and games. The selections were based on performances evaluated over the past four years. Among the recipients are chess players Divya Deshmukh and Vidit Gujrathi, and athletics star Tejaswin Shankar.
Divya Deshmukh‘s selection follows her historic victory at the FIDE Women’s World Cup, where she became the first Indian woman to win the title. Tejaswin Shankar was recognised for his achievements in athletics, including a silver medal at the 2023 Asian Games. The list of Arjuna Award recipients spans multiple disciplines, highlighting a broad range of sporting excellence.
Other notable athletes receiving the Arjuna Award include:
- Athletics: Muhammed Ajmal V and Priyanka Goswami
- Badminton: Treesa Jolly and Pullela Gayatri Gopichand
- Boxing: Narender
- Deaf Shooting: Dhanush Srikanth
- Hockey: Lalremsiami and Rajkumar Pal
- Kabaddi: Surjeet and Pooja
- Para-shooting: Rudransh Khandelwal
- Para-athlete: Ekta Bhyan
- Rowing: Arvind Singh
- Shooting: Akhil Sheoran
Additionally, footballer I Arumainayagam received an Arjuna Award in the lifetime category.
Coaching and Institutional Recognition
The Dronacharya Award for regular coaching excellence was presented to Parveer Singh for athletics, Chhote Lal Yadav for boxing, and Neha Nandkumar Chauhan for shooting. These coaches were recognised for guiding athletes to podium finishes at international events. For dedicated service over decades, Dharmendra Singh Yadav (boxing) and Virendra Kumar (wrestling) were selected for the Dronacharya Award (Lifetime).
The Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar, which acknowledges institutional work in sports promotion and development, was conferred upon the Army Paralympic Node in Pune. This recognition highlights its efforts in developing and training adaptive athletes. The awards ceremony for all recipients is scheduled to take place shortly.
Source: english.gujaratsamachar.com
