All About Dhyan Chand Award

Every single year, our nation produces incredible and hardworking sportsperson who are indeed capable of achieving high ranks and medals. But the real difficult task is to achieve any sporting honor which requires a hardworking and determined person throughout the career and bring pride to the country by their extraordinary performances.

One such honor is: “Major Dhyan Chand Award” which is officially known as: ‘Major Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sports and Games. The Dhyan Chand Award was introduced and first awarded to Shahuraj Birajdar for his achievements in Boxing in the year 2002. The award is named after an Indian Field Hockey Player, Major Dhyan Chand, who scored more than 1000 goals in his career of 20 years from 1926 to 1948.

The Award is a symbol of extraordinary performances displayed by the individual in any sport or game. The Award is awarded annually by the “Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports” and the recipients of the award are chosen by a committee including the Ministry of honored sportsperson of their time. As of 2020, the recipient of the award receives an amount of ten lakh rupees, a statuette, a certificate along a ceremonial dress.

It is awarded to only 75 individuals till now and is given only for the achievements made in the disciplines included in the event like Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games, and World Cup. The nomination is accepted only till 30 April of a given year. The committee made of nine honored members submits their recommendations to the ‘Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports’ so that they can be approved further.

Hence, the ‘Major Dhyan Chand’ is a remarkable award that makes every recipient proud.

By: Parth Aggarwal
S.D. Public School