Two Telugu Athletes Bag Arjuna Awards
By : Sandeep Erukala
Update: 2025-01-02 10:56 GMT
Hyderabad: The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports announced the National Sports Awards 2024 on Wednesday. The awardees will receive their honors from the President of India at a special ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan on January 17. Two Telugu athletes—one from Andhra Pradesh and one from Telangana—have made it to the prestigious list, both receiving the Arjuna Award.
The awardees are Jyothi Yarraji from Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, and Deepthi Jeevanji from Warangal, Telangana.
Achievements of Jyothi Yarraji:
• First-time Olympian and the first female athlete to represent India in the 100m hurdles at the Olympics.
• 2023 Asian champion in the 100m hurdles (silver in 200m).
• 2022 Asian Games 100m hurdles silver medallist, finishing behind Lin Yuwei (China).
• 2023 World University Games 100m hurdles bronze medallist.
• Finished fourth in the 4x100m relay at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
• National record holder in the 100m hurdles (12.78 seconds, set at the 2023 World University Games in Chengdu).
Achievements of Deepthi Jeevanji:
Deepthi made history at the Paris 2024 Paralympics, becoming the first intellectually impaired Indian athlete to win a Paralympic medal. She clinched bronze in the women’s 400m T20 category, finishing the race in 55.82 seconds. Ukraine’s Yulia Shuliar (55.16s) and Türkiye’s Ayser Onder (55.23s) won gold and silver, respectively.