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The Hindu
14-05-2025
- Sport
- The Hindu
Neeraj Chopra conferred honorary rank of Lieutenant Colonel in Territorial Army
Double Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra was on Tuesday conferred with the Honorary Rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Territorial Army. The appointment, according to The Gazette of India, a weekly public journal and an authorised legal document of the Government of India, came into effect on April 16. 'No 3 (E) dated 9th May 2025 in exercise of the powers conferred by Para -31 of the Territorial Army Regulations, 1948, the president is pleased to confer on sEx- Sub Maj Neeraj Chopra, PVSM, Padma Shri, VSM, Village & Post Office Khandra, Panipat, Haryana with effect from 16 April, 2025,' a statement from Major General GS Choudhry, Joint Secretary, Department of Military Affairs, read. Neeraj, who was earlier enrolled as a Junior Commissioned Officer in the rank of Naib Subedar in the Indian Army on August 26, 2016, was awarded the Arjuna Award two years later. He received the Khel Ratna and Vishisht Seva Medal for his meritorious service before getting promoted to the rank of Subedar in 2021. Two years after being awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal, the highest peacetime medal of the Indian Armed Force in 2022, he was promoted to the rank of Subedar Major. In 2022, the former World Champion was also named recipient of the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India. The javelin thrower will start his season on Friday at the Doha Diamond League, following which he will compete at the 71st Janusz Kusocinski Memorial, a World Athletics Continental Tour (Silver Level) meet in Chorzow, Poland, on May 23. He is also set to participate in the Ostrava Golden Spike 2025 athletics meet in the Czech Republic city on June 24, hoping to be third-time lucky after pulling out in the last two editions due to injuries. He was originally set to be the face of the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on May 24 before it was indefinitely suspended due to India-Pakistan border tensions. Related Topics Neeraj Chopra
NDTV
01-05-2025
- Sport
- NDTV
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, Chirag Shetty Finally Get Their Khel Ratna; Hope For End To 'Difficult Phase' Soon
Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya presented the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award to badminton stars Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy on Thursday, completing a long-pending felicitation that the celebrated duo feels would help it tied over the current "difficult phase" made worse by fitness issues. Chirag and Satwik were to receive the honour last year after being picked for the year 2023 but could not attend the glittering ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhawan owing to their playing commitments. They were due to receive the award from Mandaviya in February this year but that too had to be postponed after Satwik's father R Kasi Viswanatham died of cardiac arrest on the day of the brief ceremony for which he was scheduled to travel. "We couldn't go to the Rashtrapati Bhawan to receive the Khel Ratna award last year. Finally, to get it now is a huge boost for our confidence as we are going off-track and not playing for few months," Satwik said referring to the recent slump in form and the fitness setbacks that the two have been enduring. "It motivates us to get back and do well in the upcoming tournaments," he added. Mandaviya lauded the duo's "dedication and exceptional performances on the court." However, they have not been in the best form for the past one year with the underwhelming show in the All England Championship in March being a case in point. They pulled out of the ongoing Sudirman Cup due to health issues. "It's quite tough, after Olympics so many things have happened. It's part of life but things will come back on track and it's just a bad phase. Chirag was injured for some days, I was sick for some days. "We played All England but couldn't do well but it's just a matter of time, once we get back on tour, there is no stopping us," said Satwik. The recent slump notwithstanding, Satwik and Chirag have been trailblazers in Indian badminton. The duo won a gold at the 2022 Asian and Commonwealth Games, and the 2023 Asian Championships. The duo is the only Indian doubles pair to hold the No. 1 spot in the BWF World Rankings and win a BWF World Tour Super 1000 title. In 2023, Satwik also set a Guinness World Record for the fastest badminton smash by a male player, reaching a speed of 565 km/h. "Finally, we received it today. It was long due. It was announced in 2023. The support from the Government of India has been tremendous since the time me and Satwik were paired together," Chirag said. "All our big wins - whether becoming the World No. 1, winning Asian Games gold or clinching the Thomas Cup title - a lot of credit goes to the Indian government for their continuous support," he added.
