Star athlete Anju Bobby George and Olympic silver medallist Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore were on Tuesday awarded the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and the Arjuna award respectively by President A P J Abdul Kalam at an impressive function at the Rashtrapathi Bhavan.

Apart from Anju, who won the honour for winning the bronze medal in the World Athletic Championships, and Rathore who won India's first individual silver medal in the Athens Olympics last month, the President also honoured 14 other sportspersons with the Arjuna award.

The President also gave away the Dronacharya awards, Dhyan Chand awards, Tenzing Norgay national adventure awards and the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy, for excellence in sports, to Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar.