India's Khel Ratnas Honoured on National Sports Day
August 29, 2016 17:39
India's Rio Olympic stars PV Sindhu and Sakshi Malik were among the four athletes conferred with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award on Monday, with 15 other sportspersons receiving the Arjuna Award
Sakshi Malik (L) and Dipa Karmakar (R) share a light moment at the Rashtrapati Bhawan, during the award ceremony on Monday. (All images from PTI)
Sakshi Malik, Jitu Rai, Dipa Karmakar and PV Sindhu are the four athletes to be conferred with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, India's highest sporting honour, this year.
PV Sindhu, who won the silver medal in badminton women's singles at the Rio Olympics, greets the president before stepping forward to receive the award.
Sindhu receives the Khel Ratna from President Pranab Mukherjee.
Sakshi Malik, who won the bronze in women's 58 kg freestyle wrestling, is handed her award by President Mukherjee.
Dipa Karmakar's stunning fourth place finish in the gymnastics women's vault finals at the Games helped her make it to the list of Khel Ratna awardees this year.
Shooting ace Jitu Rai too was conferred with the prestigious award following his consistent showing over the last few years.
Wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who crashed out of the Olympics after a mid-bout injury, was conferred with the Arjuna Award. Fourteen other athletes received the Arjuna Award.