Eight sportspersons were named for the prestigious Padma awards on the eve of the 2020 Republic Day, and they are Mary Kom (Padma Vibhushan), P V Sindhu (Padma Bhushan), Zaheer Khan, Rani Rampal, M P Ganesh, Jitu Rai, Bembem Oinam and Tarundeep Rai -- all Padma Shri
Celebrated boxer M C Mary Kom will be conferred with the Padma Vibhushan, the country's second-highest civilian award, while world champion shuttler P V Sindhu will be bestowed with the Padma Bhushan among eight sportspersons named for the prestigious honours on Saturday. (More Sports News)
The names were announced by the government on the eve of the Republic Day.
The 36-year-old Mary Kom, also a Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament, won a bronze medal in the 2012 London Olympics while also being crowned as world champion six times in an illustrious career.
The 24-year-old Sindhu is a silver medallist at the 2016 Rio Olympics and is also the only Indian world champion in badminton.
Sindhu has also won four other World Championships medals -- 2 silver and 2 bronze -- besides the gold she won last year.
The other six sportspersons were named for Padma Shri. They are cricketer Zaheer Khan, current Indian women's hockey captain Rani Rampal, former Indian men's hockey player M P Ganesh, shooter Jitu Rai, former Indian women's football team captain Bembem Oinam and archer Tarundeep Rai.