The Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports announced the National Sports Awards 2025 on August 18, 2026, recognizing excellence in sports across multiple categories. The awards were based on recommendations from a Selection Committee chaired by former Supreme Court Justice (Retd.) Arun Kumar Mishra, which included eminent sportspersons, sports journalists, and administrators.
Seventeen sportspersons received the Arjuna Award for outstanding performance in Sports and Games, recognizing consistent performance over the previous four years along with leadership, sportsmanship, and discipline qualities. The recipients include Shri Tejaswin Shankar (Athletics), Shri Muhammed Ajmal V (Athletics), Ms. Priyanka Goswami (Athletics), Ms. Treesa Jolly (Badminton), Ms Pullela Gayatri Gopichand (Badminton), Shri Narender (Boxing), Shri Vidit Santosh Gujarathi (Chess), Ms. Divya Jitendra Deshmukh (Chess), Shri Dhanush Srikanth (Deaf shooting), Ms. Lalremsiami (Hockey), Shri Rajkumar Pal (Hockey), Shri Surjeet (Kabaddi), Ms. Pooja (Kabaddi), Shri Rudransh Khandelwal (Para-shooting), Ms. Ekta Bhyan (Para athletics), Shri Arvind Singh (Rowing), and Shri Akhil Sheoran (Shooting).
Shri I Arumainayagam (Football) received the Arjuna Award (Lifetime) for contributing to sports promotion after retirement from active sporting career.
The Dronacharya Award for outstanding coaches was presented to three coaches in the regular category: Shri Parveer Singh (Athletics), Shri Chhote Lal Yadav (Boxing), and Ms Neha Nandkumar Chavan (Shooting). Two coaches received the award in the lifetime category: Shri. Dharmendra Singh Yadav (Boxing) and Shri. Virender Kumar (Wrestling).
The Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar 2025 was awarded to Army Paralympic Node, Pune for their visible role in sports promotion and development. Applications for all awards were received through a dedicated online portal that permitted self-application by sportspersons, coaches, and entities.