NEW DELHI:
Hockey India
on Wednesday announced the list of players recommended for the esteemed Arjuna Awards and Dhyan Chand Awards 2016.
VR Raghunath
,
Dharamvir Singh
and
Ritu Rani
have been recommended for the
Arjuna Award while
Sylvanus Dung Dung
has been recommended for the
Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award
and veteran coach CR Kumar got recommendation for the
Dronacharya Award
.
Former India player Sylvanus Dung Dung, 70, who was part of the Olympic gold medal winning team in 1980 has been recommended for the Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award. Dung Dung, an unsung hero of Indian hockey, had struck the golden goal against Spain which brought home the elusive gold medal after a disappointing outing for the nation in the 1976 Montreal Olympics when India had missed the podium.
Speaking on the recommendations, Mohd Mushtaque Ahmad, secretary general, Hockey India said, "We are extremely delighted to recommend the players who have proved their mettle against all odds on the turf and displayed extraordinary performances in India and abroad. With their passion and dedication for the sport, these players who have been recommended have done India proud by earning several accolades internationally."
"I truly believe they deserve every recognition and appreciation for the efforts they have put in making the nation shine in various tournaments. While for each player being conferred with the most coveted Major Dhyan Chand Award and Arjuna Award is a dream that further inspires them, being conferred with the Dronacharya Award is the highest form of recognition and respect for every coach," Ahmad said in a media release.
VR Raghunath, who made his debut in 2005, has been an integral part of the national team's defence structure and is counted as one of the best drag flickers in the country. He was a part of the Indian team that won the bronze in the 2007 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, silver in 2008, gold in the 2007 Asia Cup and silver in 2013 where he scored six goals for India. He was one of the key members of the squad in the 2014 Asian Games where India won the gold after nearly three decades and secured an Olympic berth.
Likewise, Dharamvir Singh too has been an asset to the team and was part of the Asian Games gold medal winning team along with the silver medal at the
Commonwealth Games
2014 and the bronze medal at 24th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup. Ritu Rani, on the other hand, has been an extraordinary talent and a fine captain who led the team from the front and helped them achieve the much-awaited Rio Olympic berth. Indian eves last outing in the Olympic Games was in 1980 at Moscow.
Meanwhile coach CR Kumar has served Indian hockey for long with diligence and hard work. He is best known for guiding the Indian junior men's hockey team to glory in the 2011 Junior World Cup in Hobart. In recent years he has been closely working with chief coach Neil Hawgood as the coach of the senior women's hockey team.