Badminton Queen of India Saina Nehwal (10 page)

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Award

The Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Award is given primarily to the top overall winners in the Inter-University Tournaments, as these tournaments are a very much integral and important part of games and sports in the universities and colleges and they also play a very important role in supplying the talents to the country. This is actually a rolling trophy and a small replica of the Trophy is also awarded to the University for Retention. A Committee that is constituted by the AIU recommends the award of the MAKA Trophy. They usually send their recommendation to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports of India each year. They recommend the names of 4 Universities according to the order of merit mentioning their score and also giving the calculation sheet.

Dronacharya Award

There is another award in India that is named as the Dronacharya Award and the Government of India instituted this honourable award in the year of 1985. The award comprises a bronze statuette of Dronacharya, a scroll of honour and a cash component of 500,000 INR. The award was instituted in 1985. The award is named after the very famous archery coach, mentioned in the epic of India known as the Mahabharata. This very award is not related with the sportspersons who are still playing in the field; instead this is related to those eminent coaches of any particular sport. These coaches are selected by their performance of being successful to train the sportspersons or teams and also help them to achieve the outstanding results in the international competitions. The person, who gets the award, receives a statuette of the great Guru Dronacharya, a scroll of honour, a ceremonial dress and also a cash prize.

Dhyan Chand Award

Dhyan Chand Award is India’s highest award for lifetime achievement in sports and games, given by the Government of India. The award is named after the legendary Indian hockey player Dhyan Chand. The award was initiated in 2002. The award carries a cash prize of 5 lakh (500,000 INR), a statuette, ceremonial dress and a scroll of honour.

The award is given to the veteran sportspersons of India for their lifetime achievement in their respective field of sport. It is also named as the Dhyan Chand Award for Life Time Achievement in Sports and Games. This is new award that is instituted by the Government of India in the year of 2002. The main objective of the award is to show honour to those sportspersons who have contributed a lot to their respective sports by their performance and still continue to contribute to the promotion of sports even after their retirement from the active sporting career.

Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award

The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna is the highest honour bestowed to a sportsperson for his/her achievements in India. The award was instituted in the year 1991-92 to provide honour a supreme national accolade to various achievers in the field of sports. The words Khel Ratna, literally mean Sports Gem in English. The award is named after the former Prime Minister of India, late Rajiv Gandhi. The award comprises a medal, a scroll of honour and a substantial cash component.

Other Sports Awards in India

Apart from the awards that have been discussed so far, there are some other special awards from the Indian Government that are being given to the medal winners in the international sports events. In this category of the award, the Government gives away some cash awards. These cash awards are given for winning medals in the international championships like the Olympic Games or the World cup or World Championships or the Asian and Commonwealth Games or Championships. The players who become victorious in the game of Chess and Billiards or Snooker as well as the junior sportspersons who win medals in the World, Asian and Commonwealth Championships, are also given these awards.

Sports awards in India are bequeathed by the Government of India to honour the players who have performed very well in their field of sport. It is organised and conducted to enhance the spirit of players and recognise their skills and achievements.

Awards won by Saina Nehwal

Year 2009 - Arjuna Award

Badminton champion Saina Nehwal was conferred with the prestigious Arjuna award for sporting excellence, in the year 2009 following her success at winning the Indonesian Open Super series title, apart from winning other prestigious titles such as the Chinese Taipei Grand Prix Gold. The Arjuna award was handed over to Saina by the President of India, Pratibha Patil at the presidential palace in New Delhi. The Arjuna awardee is given a statuette, a scroll of honour, ceremonial dress and a cash award of Rs. 5 lakhs.

Saina Nehwal being felicitated with Arjuna Award
by former President of India, Ms. Pratibha Patil
at the presidential palace in New Delhi

On receiving the Arjuna award, the then 19-year old Saina Nehwal dedicated the award to her parents and her coach Pullela Gopichand, and said that the award would motivate her to go for gold at the London Olympics in 2012.

Year 2010 - Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award

Saina Nehwal was awarded the “Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award” which is India’s highest award for excellence in the field of sports, following her terrific achievements in badminton in the year 2010. The Khel Ratna award consists of a bronze statuette, citation and cash prize of Rs.7.5 lakhs for the award winner, and is handed over to the sportsperson by the President of India.

Hyderbadi shuttler Saina Nehwal, however, could not personally collect the prize from the Indian President Pratibha Patil gave on 29-Aug-2010 at the Rashtrapati Bhawan, as she had not yet returned from Paris, where she lost in the quarter-finals of the World Championships.

Saina was almost an automatic choice for the Khel Ratna, due to her phenomenal rise in the badminton world as she rose to no. 2 in the badminton world rankings and had won 3 super-series tournaments in 2010, apart from winning other prestigious titles the same year. She earlier had been the world junior badminton champion apart from having surprised everyone by reaching the quarter-finals of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Year 2010 - Padma Shri Award

Saina Nehwal receives Padma Shri Award from
President Prathiba Singh Patil at Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi

Saina Nehwal won the prestigious Padma Shri award in Jan-2010 barely 4 months after receiving the Arjuna award in 2009. The award carries a medal, a scroll of honour and a cash prize of Rs. 5 lakhs.

Year 2012, London Olympics-Bronze Medal

•    INR 1 crore (US$189,000) cash award from the Haryana Government.

•    INR 50 lakh (US$94,500) cash award from the Rajasthan Government.

•    INR 50 lakh (US$94,500) cash award from the Andhra Pradesh Government.

•    INR 10 lakh (US$18,900) cash award from the Badminton Association of India.

Saina’s Injury Free Career

Saina Nehwal, one of the most proficient athletes in Indian sports, has undoubtedly a lot of fitness secrets to share. A vegetarian from Hissar – Haryana, Saina has successfully battled with agile and strong players from China, amongst other countries. Saina’s tanacity and grit have won her many laurels and fans across the globe.

Badminton is a sport that requires strong muscular strength, high endurance and not to mention levels of fitness needed to display by a prayer. Saina Nehwal has all this and more. But the most incredible thing to note here is that Saina had enjoyed an inury free career. It is definitely remarkable for a badminton player. But how did she manage it anyway?