Para-athletes steal show as President gives away honours

new delhi: Manu Bhaker and D Gukesh provided a sprinkling of stardust but it was India’s perseverant para-athletes who walked away with the most boisterous applause when President Droupadi Murmu bestowed the National Sports Awards in a regal ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here on Friday.

Double Olympics medallist Bhaker, 18-year-old chess world champion Gukesh, men’s hockey captain Harmanpreet Singh and Paralympic gold-winning high jumper Praveen Kumar were presented the country’s highest sporting honour - the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna. Thirty-two athletes were honoured with the Arjuna Award out of which an unprecedented 17 were para-athletes.

The athletes selected for the Arjuna award included Paris Olympics bronze medal-winning group of wrestler Aman Sehrawat, shooters Swapnil Kusale and Sarabjot Singh (Bhaker’s partner in the 10m air pistol mixed competition of Olympics) and the men’s hockey team players Jarmanpreet Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, Sanjay and Abhishek.