"Very honored to be awarded the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna" - Neeraj Chopra

Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra has said that he feels honored to be chosen for the prestigious Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award. The Tokyo Olympic gold medalist took to his social media handles on Tuesday night to express his gratitude for the support and help extended to him.

"Very honoured to be awarded the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna alongside some outstanding sportspersons," he tweeted. "Aap sabhi ke sahyog aur support ke liye tahe dil se dhanyavad. Koshish ye hi rahegi ki aise hi apne performances se desh ke liya aur success haasil kar paun! Jai Hind." (Thank you for all the support. I hope I can achieve more success for my country through my performances).

Read: Manpreet Singh added to Khel Ratna awardees list

The Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award is given for spectacular and the most outstanding performance in the field of sports by a sportsperson over a period of four years.

Neeraj Chopra became the second Indian after Abhinav Bindra to win an individual gold medal at the Olympics for his effort of 87.58m.

Neeraj Chopra among 12 sportspersons to be awarded the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award

The Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award will be given to 12 sportspersons including Neeraj Chopra (athletics), Ravi Kumar (wrestling), Lovlina Borgohain (boxing), PR Sreejesh (hockey), Avani Lekhara (para-shooting), Sumit Antil (para-athletics), Pramod Bhagat (para-badminton), Krishna Nagar (para-badminton), Manish Narwal (para-shooting), Mithali Raj (cricket), Sunil Chhetri (football), and Manpreet Singh (hockey).

35 athletes have also been chosen for this year's Arjuna Award. The list of Arjuna awardees includes multiple Indian Paralympians and cricketer Shikhar Dhawan.

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports on Tuesday announced the list for the National Sports Awards 2021. The awardees will receive their awards, citations and trophy from the President of India at a specially organized function at the Darbar Hall of Rashtrapati Bhavan on November 13.