New Delhi [India], June 23 (ANI): Veteran Hockey participant Savita Punia and late Bhagwandas Raikwar have been conferred with the Padma Shri in recognition of their excellent contribution to Indian sports activities.
Raikwar was honoured posthumously with the Padma Shri for bringing worldwide recognition to ‘Akhada’ (conventional wrestling/martial arts), essentially the most historic weapon-based artwork type of Bundelkhand.
His son Rajkumar Raikwar acquired the award from President Droupadi Murmu on the perform held at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Tuesday night.
Tennis legend Vijay Amritraj acquired the Padma Bhushan, whereas Vladimir Mestvirishvili was honoured with the Padma Shri posthumously, for his contribution within the discipline of Sports as a coach, changing into the primary overseas coach to obtain a Padma award.
Punia in 2025 grew to become solely the second Indian goalkeeper, after PR Sreejesh, to achieve 300 worldwide caps, becoming a member of an elite membership and underlining her exceptional longevity and consistency on the highest degree.
She additionally performed a pivotal position in India’s historic fourth-place end on the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, a landmark marketing campaign that elevated the stature of Indian ladies’s hockey worldwide. Her expertise and presence between the posts had been additionally invaluable in qualifying for the Rio 2016 Olympics for the primary time in 36 years and the 2018 Hockey Women’s World Cup, the place India reached the Quarter-Finals.
While Amritraj peaked at 18 and 23 in singles and doubles careers, respectively, profitable 13 doubles and 15 singles titles all through his journey as a tennis participant, which lasted over 20 years.
Also, former Indian skipper Rohit Sharma has been conferred with the Padma Shri in recognition of his excellent contribution to Indian cricket over the previous many years.
Under the management of Rohit Sharma, India’s males’s crew clinched the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 title in Barbados and the Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai.
The Padma Awards 2026 are being conferred by President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi. During the second Civil Investiture Ceremony on June 23, a complete of 65 Padma Awards are scheduled to be offered, together with two Padma Vibhushan, seven Padma Bhushan and 56 Padma Shri awards.
The first Civil Investiture Ceremony for the Padma Awards 2026 was held on May 26, throughout which 66 Padma Awards had been conferred. (ANI)