Sport · India Bureau
Sports Ministry Skips Khel Ratna Award for 2025; 17 Arjuna Awardees Announced
India's Sports Ministry has decided against conferring the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award this year, while announcing a reduced list of 17 recipients for the Arjuna Award, including athletes Tejaswin Shankar, Divya Kakran and Gayatri Gopichand.
LSN India ·
The Sports Ministry on Tuesday announced the country's premier sporting honours for 2025, notably forgoing any allocation of the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award this year. The decision represents a significant shift in the annual awards calendar, which traditionally sees the nation's highest sporting honour distributed to a deserving athlete.
In place of the Khel Ratna conferment, the ministry unveiled a carefully curated list of 17 Arjuna Award recipients, recognising excellence across various sporting disciplines. The awardees include notable athletes such as sprinter and high jumper Tejaswin Shankar, wrestler Divya Kakran, and badminton player Gayatri Gopichand, among others. The Arjuna Award, instituted to honour outstanding individual performance in sports, maintains its significance as a key recognition in India's sporting ecosystem.
The pruned list of Arjuna awardees reflects a stringent evaluation process, with the ministry maintaining rigorous criteria for selection. The decision to withhold the Khel Ratna Award for 2025 has been taken as part of the ministry's broader framework for sports recognition, though official reasons for the omission remain undisclosed.
These honours recognise athletes who have demonstrated exceptional skill, dedication and contribution to their respective sports, contributing to India's growing presence in international sporting competitions.