Vinesh, Dutee, Bhaker also among nominees for 'BBC Indian Sportswoman of the Year'.
Indian quarter-miler Nirmala Sheoran on Friday secured her Rio Olympics berth after clocking an impressive 51.48 seconds in the women's 400 metre category in the National Inter-State Senior Athletics championships at the G.M.C. Balayogi Stadium in Hyderabad on Friday.
This Women's Day Rediff.com salutes India's champion athletes who have out-lived obstacles to reach the pinnacle of success.
Will India finally reach the elusive double-digit mark? Raj Kishore Mishra, former joint secretary at the sports ministry, for one, is willing to stick his neck out on the possibility.
The newly-elected executive council of the Indian Olympic Association constituted a three-member advisory panel, on Thursday, which will guide the office-bearers on problems faced by athletes. It also formed a nine-member Athletes' Commission.
P T Usha feels "frustrated sometimes" at the lack of corporate interest in athletics and said despite running from pillar to post, she has failed to find a sponsor for her protege Tintu Luka.
Neeraj Chopra scripted history in Tokyo on Saturday, winning the men's Javelin Throw and ending India's wait for an elusive medal in athletics at the Olympics.
India's badminton ace Saina Nehwal will be conferred the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, the country's highest sports honour.
Sprint queen P T Usha discusses the latest doping scandal to hit Indian sport with Sriram Bala.
In stark contrast to other sportspersons who have given a thumbs-up to the Formula One coming to India, former sprint queen P T Usha says hosting the Grand Prix is nothing but a "criminal waste" of money.
India's Tintu Luka made it to the women's 800m semi-finals but shot putter Om Prakash Karhana was eliminated in the qualifying round of the World Athletics Championships.
World chess champion Viswanathan Anand joined the Board of Directors of Olympic Gold Quest, which already has all time great Indian sportspersons like Geet Sethi, Prakash Padukone, P T Usha and Leander Paes, to give a boost to Olympic medal hopefuls.
Former medical officer of NIS Patiala, Dr Sanjib Nandi was on Wednesday physically assaulted by guards as he tried to enter the institution premises to meet Justice Mukul Mudgal, who is probing the doping scandal in athletics. Nandi, who blew the whistle on doping practices at NIS Patiala, wanted to meet Justice Mudgal but was stopped by the guards at the gates this morning and refused entry.
Ace drag-flicker Sandeep Singh, India's women's cricket captain Jhulan Goswami and boxer Dinesh Kumar are among the top sportspersons nominated for the Arjuna award, in recognition of their outstanding achievements during the last year. The National sports awards (Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna and Dhyan Chand) selection committee, headed by P T Usha, met in Delhi on Friday and finalised the list of awardees.
Sprint legend P T Usha was on Thursday named chairperson of the selection committee for this year's national sports awards, while hockey icon Ashok Kumar was appointed head of the panel to pick the Dronacharya awardees. The 17-member panel to select the winners of the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna and Dhyan Chand awards also includes tennis ace Leander Paes and Olympic bronze medallist weightlifter Karnam Malleswari.
P T Usha narrowly missed a medal and history at the Los Angeles Olympics when she finished fourth in 400m hurdles but such was the Indian legend's aura that the eventual gold medallist, Nawal El Moutawakel, on Sunday revealed that she too ended up crying for the heartbroken 'Payyoli Express' that day.
Discus thrower Vikas Gowda came a cropper once again outside the home environs while P T Usha's protegee Tintu Luka impressed by recording the best time among women's 800m finalists on yet another medal-less day for India in the Asian Games athletics in Guangzhou on Wednesday.
After promoting products ranging from jewellery, clothes and apartments, Malayalam superstars Mammootty and Mohanlal are all set to wear new caps as brand ambassadors for sports in Kerala. While Mammootty has been made brand ambassador of the newly launched Kerala Volleyball League (KVL), Mohanlal has been roped in by the Kerala Athletics Federation to promote athletics.
India's ace 800m runner Tintu Luka's wait to qualify for London Olympics continued even as she won her second gold medal in four days on the European circuit.
Legendary P T Usha's protege Tintu Luka stole the limelight on the first day of the Asian All-Star Athletics meet with a personal best timing to win the gold medal in women's 800 metres, in Delhi, on Thursday. Luka bagged the gold with an effort of 2 minutes 01.24 seconds and bettered her earlier best of 2:01.61, which she clocked in May at the National Open in Kochi.
A day after P T Usha broke down and claimed humiliation on being denied proper accommodation in Bhopal, Athletics Federation of India (AFI) washed its hand off the incident and termed it a "communication gap" between the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and the sprint queen.
The Kerala High Court, had on Friday, directed the central government to ensure participation of Chitra in the World Athletics Championships in London next month.
Baichung Bhutia and Kiran Bedi's refusal notwithstanding, the Olympic torch relay continues to draw celebrities, with sharpshooters Manavjit Singh Sandhu and Abhinav Bindra joining the April 17 run with the flame. According to a statement from Samsung, the Olympic torch relay partner, sprint queen P T Usha, powerlifter Rajinder Singh Rahelu, actor Sagarika Ghatge of Chak De! India fame and sarod player Ayaan Ali Khan will also join the run.
Tamil Nadu's S Dhanalakshmi, who had stunned Dutee Chand in the 100 metres final, beat Hima Das, another star athlete, in the 200 metres semi-final heats, clocking a new meet record time of 23.26 seconds, in the Federation Cup National Senior Athletics Championships, in Patiala, on Thursday.
The body of the 40-year old, who committed suicide yesterday, was brought to Kannur by road and handed over to the Kerala Police at Palakkad.
Do you think the IOA has done the right thing in apponting Salman as the brand ambassador which they clam is to the motivate the athletes and also increase awareness of Olympic sports in the country? Or do you think the appointment is just a gimmick?
A pre-tournament medal contender, the 23-year-old Neeraj Chopra fuelled the country's expectations by topping the qualification round with a stunning first round throw of 86.59 metres.
Rediff.com presents India's Olympic wonder-women...
Sunil Gavaskar, P T Usha, Geet Sethi, Dhanraj Pillay and Irfan Pathan have joined hands to spread the message of 'Sports for Development and Peace'.
Former middle distance ace Shiny Wilson discusses long jumper Anju Bobby George's chances at the Olympics as she goes down memory lane with Shobha Warrier.
The Kerala High Court on Friday directed the central government to ensure participation of P U Chitra in the World Athletics Championships in London next month.
India's K M Binu qualified for the semi-finals of the one-lap race.
'I have often felt that the powers-that-be tried to influence the sports awards. There are many incidents in which I have seen and experienced cheap politics,' says P T Usha.
At 42, Dizezny D'Souza trained with teenagers at a school ground to get back into running. She won silver and bronze for India in China.
India's champion shuttler P V Sindhu feels more women will win medals for the country in future and hard work is the key to success.
Milkha Singh, 92, best known as the 'Flying Sikh' and most remembered for finishing fourth in the 400m final in the 1960 Rome Olympic Games, was bestowed with the lifetime achievement award.
India has just 28 Olympic medals to its credit since making a debut back in 1900.
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