PR Sreejesh and R Ashwin among Padma awardees this year

PR Sreejesh, R Ashwin (Pic: X/AFP)

A distinguished group of athletes and coaches were conferred with the prestigious Padma awards, among the nation's highest civilian honours on the eve of India's 76th Republic Day.

Former hockey goalkeeper PR Sreejesh and renowned cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin were among those recognised.

Sreejesh, who was awarded the Padma Bhushan, has had a distinguished career in field hockey, including two Olympic appearances. The two-time Olympian retired following India's bronze medal win over Spain at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Over his career, Sreejesh played a pivotal role in several major victories for India, including a gold medal at the 2014 Asian Games, a bronze at the 2018 Asian Games, a gold at the 2019 FIH Men's Series Finals, and a silver at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Meanwhile, the Padma Shri award was bestowed upon other sporting icons including para-archer Harvinder Singh, former football captain IM Vijayan, former cricketer Ashwin, and coach Satyapal Singh.

Harvinder's extraordinary feat at the Paris 2024 Paralympics, where he won India's first-ever gold medal in para-archery, was particularly remarkable. His straight-set victory of 6-0 over Poland's Lukasz Ciszek in the men's individual recurve open event earned him global recognition. This achievement followed his historic bronze medal in the recurve para-archery event at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics.

Vijayan, one of Indian football's finest talents, also received the Padma Shri. A key figure in the 1990s, Vijayan led India to victory in the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship in both 1993 and 1997, emerging as the top scorer in each edition. He was honoured with the AIFF Player of the Year title in 1992, 1997, and 2000 and received the Arjuna Award in 2003.

Announcing his retirement after the third Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, Ashwin leaves behind a remarkable legacy in Test cricket, having taken 537 wickets in 106 matches at an average of 24.00, with best figures of 7/59. With 37 five-wicket hauls and eight ten-wicket match hauls, he ranks as India's second-highest wicket-taker in Tests, behind only Anil Kumble.

Ashwin also excelled with the bat, scoring 3,503 runs in 151 innings, including six centuries, and has been a key player in India's victories in the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy.