Indian women's team captain Ritu Rani and senior's men's team drag-flicker V R Raghunath were on Wednesday recommended by Hockey India for the Arjuna Award.
The 17th Asian Games came to a close on Saturday, bringing an end to two weeks of intense competition, drama and controversy that shone a light on the best and worst of a region that will host the world's biggest events for the next decade.
The young Indian hockey team began its Asian Champions Trophy campaign in style as it spanked hosts China 5-0, displaying flashes of brilliance and dictating the pace of the game Ordos on Saturday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
With eight gold medals, Indian men's hockey team has been the most successful side in Olympic history but since the 1980 Moscow Games, the country has not had a podium finish.
'To the youth, I will say work hard. One minute of work will not get you anything. I have worked hard for the past 20 years, 2002 was the first time I won a gold medal.'
The India hockey captain said it will provide younger players an opportunity to showcase their skills at the highest level.
The Manipur girl will captain the women's hockey team for the Afro-Asian Games and Asia Cup.
The Railway player has been named captain of the Indian women;s hockey team for the Test series against Russia.
Tennis great Leander Paes says it is "humbling" to be the first Indian tennis player and the first Asian male tennis player to be nominated for the prestigious International Tennis Hall of Fame.
Hockey legend Ashok Kumar reckons India would have won a medal had the Olympics been held this year but the break in momentum will make a big difference now that the Games are pushed to 2021.
The Indian kabaddi contingent made an impressive start to its campaign at the 18th Asian Games with the women's team mauling Japan and the men's side beating Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in Jakarta on Sunday.
In its third year, the PHL will comprise of seven teams in a single division rather than two levels of five teams each as in the earlier editions.
The ace midfielder rubbished reports that he was dropped from the Asian Games squad for lack of fitness.
Gagan Ajit Singh and Vikram Pillay failed to find a place in the list of probables for the Doha Asian Games.
Rupinder Pal Singh's brace went in vain as Indian men's hockey team lost 2-3 to hosts Australia in a tense opening game of the four-nation Invitational Tournament in Melbourne on Wednesday. The Indians began positively against top-ranked Australia, showing positive intent and energy in the first quarter. However, the first 15 minutes ended in a stalemate. Indian youngster Affan Yousuf's attacking approach almost paid dividends early on had it not been for a solid defense from the Kookaburras.
Koreans decided to give a miss to the tournament, to be held in December, in the wake of Tuesday's twin blasts in Rawalpindi.
Some stellar performances by seasoned veterans and promising youngsters continued to raise the bar in Olympic sports but there was heartbreak in equal measure when corruption scandals blighted India's favourite obsession, cricket, in a see-saw year for the country's sportspersons.
Four-time world chess champion Viswanathan Anand will be among the few sportspersons who will welcome the Queen's Baton Relay (QBR) for the Delhi Commonwealth Games when it reaches Chennai on Friday.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday.
Neeraj's gold and three other athletics silver medals, along with Saina Nehwal's badminton singles bronze, propelled India's overall medal count to 41 (8 gold, 13 silver, and 20 bronze).
'We have to convert our penalty corners successfully and aim at having at least two or three goals through the corner, besides creating the same amount of chances in every quarter.'
Five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand started his campaign at the Bilbao Final Masters with a crushing win over former FIDE world champion Ruslan Ponomariov of Ukraine in Bilbao, Spain.
Iconic public buildings, parks and railway stations dazzled with lights on the night of January 26, 1950 turning the capital city into a "fairyland".
Veteran forward Arjun Halappa has been appointed captain of the Indian team for next month's Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament in Malaysia even as drag-flicker Sandeep Singh and Sardara Singh failed to find a place in the list of 45 probables.
Top-ranked India were held to a 1-1 draw by the brisk-moving South Koreans in the round-robin league encounter of the fourth Asian Champions Trophy hockey, in Kuantan, Malaysia, on Saturday.
Former hockey Olympian Vece Paes says winning the Asian Games' tournament could kick-start a revival in the team's fortunes.
Ms Usha may soon discover that winning four gold medals at the Asian Games and qualifying for the Los Angeles Olympics is a walk in the park compared with the challenges of stabilising governance at the IOA, observes Kanika Datta.
Rio Paralympcs silver medallist remains upset over being ignored for Khel Ratna this year and feels exception should have been made by the awards committee, like it had done in 2016.
Young striker Nikkin Thimmaiah scored a hat-trick as India produced their best performance of the tournament to stun world champions and title holders Australia 4-2 on Saturday and secure a place in the third and fourth place play-off at the Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament in Ipoh, Malaysia.
The current Indian Hockey team has the potential to have a podium finish in the 2012 London Olympics but for this to happen the training system need to change, outgoing chief coach Jose Brasa said.
Tushar Khandker fired in a field goal as India defeated holders South Korea by a solitary goal to win the bronze medal in the men's hockey competition of the Asian Games in Guangzhou.
The athletes, Mandeep Kaur, AC Ashwini and Sini Jose, who were part of the 4x400 metres relay gold winning quartet at the Commonwealth and Asian Games, and Jauna Murmu, Priyanka Panwar and Tiana Mary Thomas, tested positive positive for anabolic steroids in May and June this year and were suspended, and their Ukrainian coach Yuri Ogorodnik was sacked.
Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore on Sunday said the government will launch a 'Khelo India' programme at a cost of Rs 1,756 crore for the period 2017-18 to 2019-20.
The hosts will face arch-rivals Pakistan for a place in the final, the latter scoring 4-2 upset win over eight-time champions The Netherlands earlier in the day.
The ace forward said he is fully fit and can withstand the rigours of international hockey.
Surinder Kaur scored a brace in an 8-0 victory in the opening match of the women's hockey tournament at the Afro Asian Games.
Bajrang Punia had won gold medals at the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games last year.
After being ignored initially, India's finest defender Dilip Tirkey is among 11 players who were included on Friday in the revised list of probables for major international tournaments for the next four years.
Korea beat Pakistan 4-2 to join hosts Malaysia in the semi-finals of the 16th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup.
