<h5>What are the National Sports Awards?</h5><p>The National Sports Awards are India’s highest sporting awards, given annually to recognise great achievements both nationally and internationally. These awards are given to encourage sportsmanship, instil national pride, and develop harmony among the country’s citizens.</p><p>The awards are given in six categories by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. Since 2004, the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award has also been presented with the six National Sports Awards.</p><h5>What are the six categories?</h5><figure class="image"><img src="https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/newsahoot.appspot.com/o/explained-national-sports-awards%2FSheetal%20Devi.jpg?alt=media&amp;token=ffcc9272-398c-449d-9cf2-efdc2bb9e97b"><figcaption>Sheetal Devi receiving the Arjuna Award. Photo by President of India.</figcaption></figure><ol><li><strong>Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award -</strong> This award is India’s highest sporting honour. It is given for outstanding accomplishments in sports during a four-year period.</li><li><strong>Arjuna Award -</strong> It was India's highest sporting honour until the Khel Ratna was established. It is given to those who have consistently performed well during a four-year period.</li><li><strong>Dronacharya Award -</strong> It is India’s highest sporting award for coaches. It is given to those who produce medalists at prestigious international competitions.</li><li><strong>Major Dhyan Chand Award -</strong> This award is India's highest prize for lifetime sporting achievements. It is presented to those who show outstanding performance and contributions to the promotion of sports on an individual level.</li><li><strong>Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Trophy -</strong> This award is India’s oldest national sports award. It is awarded to an institution or university for outstanding achievement in inter-university tournaments throughout the previous year.</li><li><strong>Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar -</strong> This award is given to any public or private organisation and individuals for their contributions to sports promotion and growth during the last three years.</li></ol><p>Along with these, the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award is also presented to people who have shown excellence and dedicated themselves to the development of adventure sports.</p><h5>Who are some of the recipients of the latest National Sports Awards?</h5><figure class="image"><img src="https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/newsahoot.appspot.com/o/explained-national-sports-awards%2FR%20Vaishali.jpg?alt=media&amp;token=33a37380-7b44-4414-817b-a86ab0bf1e23"><figcaption>R Vaishali receiving the Arjuna Award. Photo by President of India.</figcaption></figure><p>On 20th December 2023, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports announced the National Sports Awards for 2023. The awardees received their awards from the President of India, Droupadi Murmu, on 9th January 2024.</p><p>The awards are generally given on 29th August every year. However, it was postponed last year as the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.newsahoot.com/articles/asian-games-2023-indian-women-s-cricket-team-wins-gold">Asian Games</a> were held from 23rd September to 8th October 2023.</p><p>Some winners of the awards are:</p><ul><li>Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award - Chirag Chandrashekhar Shetty and Rankireddy Satwik Sai Raj (both for Badminton).</li><li>Arjuna Awards - Mohammed Shami (Cricket), <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.newsahoot.com/articles/16-year-old-archer-wins-3-medals-at-the-asian-para-games">Sheetal Devi</a> (Para Archery), <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.newsahoot.com/articles/first-brother-sister-duo-to-become-chess-grandmasters">R Vaishali</a> (Chess), Diksha Dagar (Golf), Pawan Kumar (Kabaddi).</li><li>Dronacharya Award - Lalit Kumar (Wrestling), Jaskirat Singh Grewal (Golf), Mahaveer Prasad Saini (Para Athletics).</li><li>Major Dhyan Chand Award - Manjusha Kanwar (Badminton), Vineet Kumar Sharma (Hockey), Kavitha Selvaraj (Kabaddi).</li><li>MAKA Trophy - Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar.</li><li>Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar - Odisha Mining Corporation Limited (OMC) and JAIN (Deemed-to-be University).</li><li>Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award - Late Savita Kanswal (Land Adventure), Tulsi Chaitanya Mothukuri (Water Adventure), Anshu Kumar Tiwari (Air Adventure), Parveen Singh (Lifetime Achievement).</li></ul><p>You can check the full list of awardees on these two sites: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1988607">Article 1</a> and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/specificdocs/documents/2024/jan/doc202419297401.pdf">Article 2</a>.</p>

The National Sports Awards for 2023 were awarded recently to various sports personalities.

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Explained: National Sports Awards

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