New Delhi: Top cueist Pankaj Advani is the frontrunner ahead of Indian cricket captain Rahul Dravid and tennis star Mahesh Bhupathi, for this year's Rajiv Gandhi Khel
Ratna award, country's highest sporting honour, according to sources.
Sources have in fact confirmed to CNN-IBN that the 21-year-old Bangalore cueist will receive the award on August 29 from the President of India.
"He is ahead of Dravid and Bhupathi in the run for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award," the sources said on Thursday.
Twenty one-year-old Advani, who hails from Bangalore, won the World Billiards Championship in 2005 and pocketed the World Snooker title in 2003. He had won the Arjuna award in 2004.
Advani, who is currently part of the Indian contingent in the World Snooker Team Championship in San Jose, US, said he was very excited on hearing the news before the start of the tournament.
When asked about his reaction on being ahead of popular sports personalities like Dravid and Bhupathi, Pankaj said, "I had tremendous respect for this sportsperson but I am happy that the selection panel took the achievement and not popularity into consideration," the Arjuna award winner of 2004, said.
"It is definetly an ecstatic feeling when you get country's highest award. I wanted it very badly."
Commonwealth games multiple gold medallist Gagan Narang has been recommended for the Arjuna Award.
Hockey's Viren Rasquinha, boxer Akhil Kumar, top women’s cueist Anuja Thakur and women's cricketer Anju jain have also been recommended for Arjuna Awards, sources said.
The selection committee for the Arjuna Awards was headed by former BCCI president Raj Singh Dungarpur.
Olympic Silver medallist Rajyavardhan Rathore won the Khel Ratna last year.
Comments
0 comment