“Respecting the feelings of citizens throughout the country,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Friday that the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award would henceforth be renamed as the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award.
The renaming is a tribute to Hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand. The Khel Ratna Award is the country's highest sporting honour.
Making the announcement, Prime Minister Modi took to Twitter and said, “I have been getting many requests from citizens across India to name the Khel Ratna Award after Major Dhyan Chand. I thank them for their views. Respecting their sentiment, the Khel Ratna Award will hereby be called the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award! Jai Hind!”
The move comes on the day, Indian women hockey team narrowly lost in the bronze medal match against Great Britain. Indian men's hockey team, on the other hand, has won Bronze in the Olympics and ended the 41 year-long Olympic medal drought.
Ahead of announcing the renaming of the award, PM tweeted, "The exceptional performance of the Men's and Women's Hockey Team has captured the imagination of our entire nation. There is a renewed interest in Hockey that is emerging across the length and breadth of India. This is a very positive sign for the coming times."
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The Khel Ratna award was established in 1991-1992. Viswanathan Anand, the chess legend, was the first recipient of the award.
In 2020, Leander Paes, Sachin Tendulkar, Dhanraj Pillay, Pullela Gopichand, Abhinav Bindra, Anju Bobby George, Mary Kom, and Rani Rampal were among the other winners.
The award, now known as the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, carries a monetary reward of Rs 25 lakh.