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Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award

Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award is the highest sporting honour of India. The award is named after Rajiv Gandhi, former Prime Minister of India. It was conferred in the year 1991-92 by the government of India to honour individual sportspersons or a sports team giving the most spectacular and outstanding performance in the field of sports over a period of four years at international level.

Instituted in the year 1991–92, the award was earlier given for the performance by a sportsperson in a particular year. But as per suggestions made by 2014 award selection committee, the Ministry revised the criteria in February 2015 to consider the performance over a period of four years instead of one year.

The first recipient of the award was Chess Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand in the year 1991–92. In 2001, Olympic Gold medallist shooter Abhinav Bindra, then aged 18, became the youngest recipient of the award.

After their spirited performances in Rio Olympics 2016, P. V. Sindhu, gymnast Dipa Karmakar, shooter Jitu Rai, and wrestler Sakshi Malik were awarded Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award.

Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award Winners List:

Year	Sports	Winner
2015-2016	Badminton  Gymnastics  Shooting  Wrestling	P V Sindhu  Dipa Karmakar  Jitu Rai  Shakshi Malik
2014-2015	Tennis	Sania Mirza
2013-2014	No Award
2012-2013	Shooting	Ronjan Sodhi
2011-2012	Shooting  Shooting	Vijay Kumar  Yogeshwar Dutt
2010-2011	Shooting	Gagan Narang
2009-2010	Badminton	Saina Nehwal
2008-2009	Boxing  Boxing	Mary Kom  Vijender Singh
2007-2008	Cricket	Mahendra Singh Dhoni
2006-2007	Trap Shooting	Manavjit Singh Sandhu
2005-2006	Billiards & Snooker	Pankaj Advani
2004-2005	Shooting	Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore
2003-2004	Athlete	Smt.Anju Bobby George
2002-2003	Athlete  Shooting	Smt K.M. Beenamol  Smt. Anjali R. Bhagwat
2001-2002	Shooting.	Shri Abhinav Bindra
2000-2001	Badminton	Pullela Gopi Chand
1999-2000	Hockey	Dhanraj Pillay
1998-1999	Athlete	Ms. Jyotirmoyee Sikdar
1997-1998	Cricket	Sachin Tendulkar
1996-1997	Tennis Weight Lifting	Leander Peas N Kunjurani
1995-1996	Weight lifting	Karnam Malleshwari
1994-1995	Yachting (Team Events)	Cdr. Homi D. Motiwala and Lt. Cdr. P.K. Garg
1992-1993	Billiards	Geet Sethi
1991-1992	Chess	Vishwanathan Anand