Celebrated Athletes Shine in 76th Republic Day Padma Awards

The Padma Awards honor distinguished service across fields. This year, former men's hockey captain P R Sreejesh was awarded Padma Bhushan, while cricket star Ravichandran Ashwin and other notable sports figures received Padma Shri for their contributions.

In recognition of outstanding contributions to Indian sports, former men's hockey captain P R Sreejesh was honored with the Padma Bhushan. Recently retired cricket star Ravichandran Ashwin received the Padma Shri, amongst a list of 139 civilian award winners unveiled on Saturday.

Included in the prestigious Padma Shri list are legendary footballer I M Vijayan and Paralympic gold medal-winning archer Harvinder Singh. Satyapal Singh, a renowned para athletics coach who guided high-jumper Praveen Kumar to a Paris Paralympics gold, is also recognized.

Sreejesh, now coaching India's junior men's hockey team, retired after a commendable Olympic bronze win. Meanwhile, Ashwin concluded an illustrious cricket career as India's second-highest test wicket-taker. They were selected for this esteemed honor by President Droupadi Murmu on the eve of the 76th Republic Day.

(With inputs from agencies.)