Olympian Athletes Honored by Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Ministers

A check of ₹2 crore was awarded to Swapnil Kusale and ₹3 crore to Sachin Khilari.

Mumbai : Athletes who won medals at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, France, were honored with checks and mementos by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.

The players were felicitated today at the Sahyadri Guest House. Chief Secretary Sujata Saunik, Additional Chief Secretary of the Sports Department OP Gupta, and Commissioner of the Directorate of Sports and Youth Services Suraj Mandhare were also present.

Swapnil Kusale, who won a bronze medal in the 50m Rifle 3 Positions event at the Olympics, and Sachin Khilari, who won a silver medal in shot put at the Paralympic Games, along with their coaches Deepali Deshpande and Arvind Chavan, were honored.

Following the state government’s recent increase in prize money for athletes and coaches who have excelled internationally, Swapnil Kusale will receive ₹2 crore, and his coach Deepali Deshpande will receive ₹20 lakh. Sachin Khilari will receive ₹3 crore, and his coach Arvind Chavan will be awarded ₹30 lakh and a plaque.

In Budapest, Hungary, the 45th Chess Olympiad was held from September 10 to 23, 2024, with teams from 193 and 181 countries participating in the men’s and women’s categories, respectively. The Indian team achieved a historic performance by winning the gold medal. State chess players Vidit Gujarathi and Divya Deshmukh were part of this team and were each honored with ₹1 crore in cash. Their mentors, Sankalp Gupta and Abhijeet Kunte, received ₹10 lakh each and a medal.

Since Vidit is currently abroad for the Gujarati competition, his father, Dr. Santosh Gujarathi, accepted the honor on behalf of Abhijit Kunte. His wife, Meghna Kunte, and Sandeep Gupta, Vidit’s father, also accepted their respective honors.