Manu Bhaker and D. Gukesh received the Khel Ratna Award from the President.

President Droupadi Murmu presented the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Awards. At a ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan on January 17, double Olympic medalist Manu Bhaker and world chess champion D. Gukesh received the award. D. Gukesh won the World Chess Championship title by defeating Ding Liren from China in the World Chess Championship held in Singapore last year. Manu Bhaker is the first Indian athlete to win a silver medal in both the Air Pistol individual event and the Air Pistol mixed team event at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister Kiren Rijiju, and Sports Secretary Sujata Chaturvedi, among other prominent figures, participated in the event. Indian men's hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh and Praveen Kumar, who won a gold in high jump at the Paris Paralympics, were also honored with the Khel Ratna Award by the country.