New Delhi: Defender Deepak Mondal on Friday became the first footballer in eight years to be selected for the prestigious Arjuna award. The last time a footballer received the Arjuna was the mercurial striker IM Vijayan in 2002.
According to sources, Mondal’s name was cleared by the selection panel, headed by PT Usha after a lot of deliberation. The panel also selected national captain and Bengal cricketer Jhulan Goswami for Arjuna award. Goswami, a fast bowler, was adjudged the Women’s Player of the Year in 2007 by the International Cricket Council (ICC).
“Initially, the names of Sunil Chetri and Mondal came up for discussion,” said a member of the committee. While some members felt the award should go to Chetri because of his prolific scoring ability, a majority voted in favour of the seasoned defender.
“Chetri is certainly one of India’s best players but he still has many years left in him. So, we decided in favour of Mondal,” a committee member explained.
A product of the Tata Football Academy (TFA), stopper back Mondal came into limelight when he joined JCT Phagwara in the 1998. After a fine season with the Punjab side, Mondal shifted his base to Calcutta the next year and has since then played for both Mohun Bagan and East Bengal.
Mondal’s international career started with the India under-19 team in 1998 under PK Banerjee and he soon became a permanent member of the senior side. Mondal is currently in Portugal with the India team preparing for the Asian Cup campaign in Doha next January.
and the winners are...
Arjuna: Krishna Punia and Joseph Abraham (Athletics), Dinesh Kumar (Boxing), Parimarjan Negi (Chess), Jhulan Goswami (Cricket), Deepak Mondal (Football), Sandeep Singh and Jasjit Kaur (Hockey), Dinesh Kumar (Kabaddi), Jajseer Singh (Paralympics), Rehan Poncha (Swimming), Sanjeev Rajput (Shooting), Kapil Dev (Volleyball), Rajiv Tomar (Wrestling), and Rajesh Choudhary (Yachting)
Dhyanchand Awards for lifetime achievement: Satish (Athletics), Kuldeep Singh (Wrestling) and Anita Chanu (Weightlifting).
Dronacharya Award: L Ibomcha Singh (Boxing), AK Bansal (Hockey), Subhas Aggarwal (Snooker and billiards).
Lifetime achievement award: AK Kutty (Athletics) and Captain Chand Roop (Wrestling).
