Mary Kom first Indian woman athlete to be recommended for Padma Vibhushan
Ace Indian women boxer Mary Kom, who has also been a six-time world champion, has been recommended by the Sports Ministry for the Padma Vibhushan award. Amongst others, while PV Sindhu has been nominated for Padma Bhushan award, six other women have been named for Padma Shri award.
This would be the first time that a woman athlete would be getting the country’s second-highest civilian honour, with the likes of chess great Viswanathan Anand (2007), cricketer Sachin Tendulkar (2008) and mountaineer Sir Edmund Hillary (posthumously in 2008), the only other three to get the award.
The Rajya Sabha member was awarded the Padma Bhushan six years back in 2013 and the Padma Shri in 2006. This time, however, defending badminton world champion PV Sindhu has been nominated for the Padma Bhushan, which is India’s third-highest civilian honour, as per TOI reports. The shuttler had previously been recommended for the Padma Bhushan back in 2015, but she didn’t win.
Apart from them, the Sports Ministry has also recommended wrestler Vinesh Phogat, table tennis player Manika Batra, Twenty20 International cricket captain Harmanpreet Kaur, hockey captain Rani Rampal, former shooter Suma Shirur, and mountaineers Tashi and Nungshi Malik, for the Padma Shri award.
The recommendations by the ministry have been sent to the Padma awards committee, who would announce the names on the eve of the Republic Day celebrations early next year.
