Hockey India Awards 2025: Hardik Singh, Navneet Kaur named Player of the Year; Zafar Iqbal receives lifetime achievement award

The 8th Hockey India Annual Awards on Friday, celebrated the finest performers and contributors to Indian hockey over the past year.

The ceremony was graced by Dr Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister of Labour and Employment, Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India and Raksha Khadse, Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India.

Navneet Kaur and Hardik Singh were honoured with the coveted Hockey India Balbir Singh Sr. Award for Player of the Year 2025 (INR 20 lakh each) in the men’s and women’s categories, respectively. Zafar Iqbal, who played an integral part in India’s Gold Medal win at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games and also won two silver medals at the Asian Games in 1978 and 1982, along with a bronze medal at the Champions Trophy in 1982 received the Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award (INR 25 lakh).

Earlier in the day, Raghu Prasad RV was honoured for being named the FIH Umpire of the Year for 2025, while Ishika was recognised for scoring a goal on her debut against Uruguay during the FIH Hockey World Cup 2026 Qualifiers in Hyderabad, Telangana. Deepika was recognised for winning the Poligras Magic Skill Award, while Abhishek was honoured for being named Player of the Tournament at the Hero Asia Cup Rajgir, Bihar 2025.

Udita was recognised for being named Player of the Tournament at the Women’s Asia Cup Hangzhou, China 2025, while Navneet was also honoured for being named Player of the Tournament at the FIH Hockey World Cup 2026 Qualifiers in Hyderabad. All awardees in the Individual Achievement category received INR 1 lakh each.

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Seven member units were also awarded INR 10 lakh each for their performances at the 15th Hockey India National Championships in 2025. The winners included Hockey Jharkhand, Hockey Haryana, Hockey Mizoram, Hockey Punjab, Hockey Madhya Pradesh, Hockey Association of Odisha, and Hockey Uttar Pradesh.

The gold medal-winning men’s hockey team from the Hero Asia Cup Rajgir 2025 was felicitated during the ceremony, with each player receiving INR 3 lakh and the support staff receiving INR 1.5 lakh each. The bronze medal-winning Indian junior men’s team from the FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup Tamil Nadu 2025 was also honoured, with players receiving INR 5 lakh each and support staff receiving INR 2.5 lakh each.

Zafar Iqbal (centre) was awarded the Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award.
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The Hindu Archives

The Hockey India Baljit Singh Award for Goalkeeper of the Year 2025 was awarded to Bichu Devi Kharibam, while Sanjay received the Hockey India Pargat Singh Award for Defender of the Year 2025. Sumit won the Hockey India Ajit Pal Singh Award for Midfielder of the Year 2025, while the Hockey India Dhanraj Pillay Award for Forward of the Year 2025 was awarded to Sukhjeet Singh. Each took home a cash award of INR 5 lakh.

Among the emerging talents, Prince Deep Singh won the Hockey India Jugraj Singh Award for Upcoming Player of the Year 2025 (Men – Under 21), while Sakshi Rana secured the Hockey India Asunta Lakra Award for Upcoming Player of the Year 2025 (Women – Under 21). Both players received INR 10 lakh.

In the officials’ category, the Hockey India President Award for Umpire/Umpire Manager of the Year 2025 (INR 2.5 lakh) was awarded to Sourabh Singh Rajput, while Biswaranjan Sarangi received the Hockey India President Award for Technical Official of the Year 2025 (INR 2.5 lakh).

The Indian men’s hockey team was felicitated for winning the Asia Cup in Rajgir in 2025.
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Hockey Jharkhand was awarded Best Member Unit of the Year 2025 (INR 2.5 lakh) for its efforts towards the development of hockey in the region.

The Hockey India President Award for Outstanding Achievement 2025 (INR 5 lakh) was presented to Shri Sardar Sarpal Singh from Roundglass Punjab Hockey Academy, while the Hockey India Jaman Lal Sharma Award for Invaluable Contribution 2025 (INR 5 lakh) was awarded to Manoj Konbegi.

Landmark individual milestones achieved in the service of the nation were also recognised during the ceremony. Manpreet Singh led the list after completing 400 international caps and received INR 4 lakh. Harmanpreet Singh received INR 2.5 lakh for reaching 250 international caps. Navneet Kaur and Nikki Pradhan received INR 2 lakh each for completing 200 international caps. Hardik, Krishan Bahadur Pathak, Nilakanta Sharma, Jarmanpreet Singh, and Salima Tete were awarded INR 1.5 lakh each for completing 150 international caps. Abhishek, Sukhjeet Singh, and Dilpreet Singh received INR 1 lakh each for completing 100 international caps.

Published on Mar 27, 2026