D Gukesh and Manu Bhaker Awarded
Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award is given for the spectacular and most outstanding performance in the field of sports by a sportsperson over the previous four years. The award has been instituted in the name of a well known and one of the world’s best field hockey players, also known as the Wizard, Major Dhyan Chand, who played international hockey from 1926 to 1949, scoring over 400 goals in his career.
The award comprises a medallion, a certificate, and a cash prize of Rs 7.5 lakh. The Khel Ratna Award was instituted in 1991-1992, and the first recipient was Chess legend Viswanathan Anand.
Based on the recommendations of the Committee and after due scrutiny, the Government for the year 2024 has decided to confer awards to Gukesh D (Chess), Manu Bhaker (Shooting), Harmanpreet Singh (Hockey) and Praveen Kumar (Para-Athletics).
World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju was honoured with the prestigious Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award 2024, the highest sporting honour in India. This remarkable achievement was conferred by the President of India, Droupadi Murmu, in recognition of Gukesh’s outstanding contributions and achievements in chess.
His achievements are:
- Gold medal in the FIDE World Chess (Classical) Championship held in Singapore in 2024.
- Gold medal in FIDE 45th Chess Olympiad (Open Team) held in Budapest in 2024.
- Gold medal in FIDE 45th Chess Olympiad (Individual) held in Budapest in 2024.
“Grateful to receive the prestigious ‘Major Dhyanchand Khel Ratna Award 2024’ from our Honourable @presidentofindia mam! Feels great and encouraging when our hard work and achievements get proper recognition,” Gukesh wrote on his Instagram platform.
D Gukesh became the 18th World Chess Champion by defeating Ding Liren (CHN). He is also the youngest world champion determined in a match format. After Vishy Anand, Gukesh became the second Indian to become a World Champion. Before that, he also won double Gold at the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest, Hungary. According to the Chess.com website, Gukesh is the current world chess champion, defeating GM Ding Liren in the FIDE World Championship on December 12, 2024. He is the youngest undisputed world champion in chess history, at 18 years and six months old, shattering the previous record of 22 years and seven months, which was set by GM Garry Kasparov in 1985.
Gukesh became the challenger to the world championship in April 2024 by winning the 2024 FIDE Candidates Tournament with a score of 9/14, which also made him the youngestever Candidates Tournament winner, states the website.
It further states that Gukesh earned the GM title at 12 years, 7 months and 17 days of age—narrowly missing GM Sergey Karjakin’s record at the time by 17 days. In July 2022, he achieved a live rating of 2700, the fourth-youngest player ever to do so. In September 2023, he was ranked eighth in the world and first in India—ending GM Viswanathan Anand’s 37-year reign as India’s toprated player.
Media reports show that Gukesh began playing chess at the age of seven. He was introduced to chess by his school. His coach at the school, Bhaskar, and later Vijayanand, helped to enhance his chess skills. His mother, Padmakumari, is a microbiologist, and his father, Rajinikanth, is an ENT surgeon.
Double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker was among four winners of the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award 2024 announced by the Sports Ministry.
After receiving the award, she wrote in X, the social media platform, “I am deeply honored to have received the prestigious Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award from the Honourable President of India @rashtrapatibhvn. This recognition inspires me to work even harder and strive for more victories to make my country proud. I extend my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has supported, guided, and cheered for me throughout my journey. Thank you!”
The 22-year-old Bhaker won a bronze medal in the women’s 10m air pistol and 10m air pistol mixed team event, in which she had paired with Sarabjot Singh to script Olympic history for the country.
With two bronze medals in three days during the Paris Olympics, Manu has entered a rather tiny list of sporting greats in India. There was a strong possibility of adding a third medal on Saturday, but she finished fourth in the 25m pistol final.
“After the end of one Olympics, I already have the next one on my mind for which the journey has already started, so after Paris, the journey of it (LA Olympics) has already begun, so after a little break, I will get back to preparing for it,” recently Bhaker told PTI.
Paris Olympics double medallist pistol shooter Manu Bhaker has said that she has already set her sights on the 2028 Los Angeles Games, and she will keep working hard to produce consistent results in the future.