For only the second time since its inception in 1991, there will be no Khel Ratna awarded at this year’s national sports day function.
The selection committee to decide the Arjuna and Khel Ratna awards for excellence in sports, chaired by cricketing legend Kapil Dev, found none of the seven names shortlisted for the highest sporting honour in the country deserving of it.
The only name that merited some discussion was that of golfer Jeev Milkha Singh. However, lack of points under the Sports Ministry’s marking scheme for the awards and Jeev’s professional status as a sportsman went against him, according to sources.
Others who had applied for the Khel Ratna were discus throwers Vikas Gowda and Krishna Poonia, P.V. Sindhu, Somdev Devvarman and Paralympians Devendra Jhajaria and H.N. Girisha.
The committee, though, finalised 15 names to be forwarded for the Arjuna Awards with Girisha making the cut. Kerala walked away with the bulk of awards, with five of the 15 belonging to the state.
While Geethu Anna Jose was rewarded for being the torchbearer of Indian women’s basketball, badminton doubles player V. Diju got the nod ahead of team mate Arvind Bhat.
Shooter Heena Sidhu also found recognition for her consistently excellent performances in the past four years, including a world record score to win gold at the World Cup Finals in 2013. Interestingly, Sidhu made the cut despite the gold, shooting’s biggest achievement, not being considered for marking according to the system promulgated by the ministry.
Tintu Luka was also nominated for the award for her continental level achievements at Asian Games and Asian Championships. Tom Joseph’s repeated attempts bore fruit after almost a decade, with the volleyball player finally managing to get himself on the shortlist for the Arjuna. The lone male cricketer in the fray, Ravichandran Ashwin, was also nominated.
Interestingly, there were no winners from sports like hockey, tennis and table tennis, which traditionally have always found representation at the annual awards function. The maximum number of applications were received in hockey — three men and four women — but none were considered for various reasons.
Arjuna Award nominees: Abhishek Verma (archery), Tintu Luka (athletics), H.N. Girisha (para athlete), Valiyaveetil Diju (badminton), Geethu Anna Jose (basketball), Jai Bhagwan (boxing), Ravichandran Ashwin (cricket), Anirban Lahiri (golf), Mamatha Poojari (kabaddi), Saji Thomas (rowing), Heena Sidhu (shooting), Anaka Alankamony (squash), Tom Joseph (volleyball), Yumnam Renubala Chanu (weightlifting) and Sunil Kumar Rana (wrestling).
