NEW DELHI,DEC 23
Paris Games double-bronze medallist Manu Bhaker is back in the news – though for wrong reasons this time after being overlooked for a nomination for Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award, which is the country’s highest sporting honour.It may be recalled that after an eminently forgettable outing in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics where she suffered a pistol malfunction, the 22-year-old redeemed herself by winning two bronze medals at 2024 Paris Games, incidentally becoming the first Indian post-independence to win two medals at a single Olympics.
At Paris, Bhaker raised her game to a different level by first finishing on the podium in 10M air pistol and then combining with an equally happy-go-lucky marksman Sarabjot Singh to clinch a second bronze in 10m mixed team event.The success was met with an outpouring of emotion for the champion and her coach Jaspal Rana, who had to go through nearly two years of trials and tribulations to achieve glory .
The double-bronze effort in Paris was expected to fetch a Khel Ratna nomination for Bhaker. But in a sudden turn of events, she has reportedly been snubbed. According to a report in the Times of India, hockey captain Harmanpreet Singh, who led the country to back-to-back bronze medals at the quadrennial extravaganza, and Praveen Kumar, who clinched gold in the Paralympics men’s high jump T64 class, have been short-listed for the prestigious honour, which is given by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS), based on the performance by a sportsperson in a year. The MYAS tried to do some damage control by saying that Bhaker did not formally apply for the award, a claim which was later rejected by her family. The ‘Keyboard Warriors’ have already started linking her snub from the Khel Ratna list to a social media post earlier this year, where she had asked fans if she deserved to receive the Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award. It may be recalled that following heavy backlash from fans, who criticised her for making such a statement, Bhaker later deleted the post.
