New Delhi, Jan 17 (IANS) Bestowed with the prestigious Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award by President Droupadi Murmu on Friday, Indian pistol ace Manu Bhaker said that the recognition will inspire her to strive for more victories in the future to make the country proud.

Manu became the first Indian athlete to win twin medals in a single edition of the summer Olympic Games in Paris, following a double bronze in the 10m air pistol and 10m air pistol mixed team event.

"I am deeply honoured to have received the prestigious Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award from the Honourable President of India @rashtrapatibhvn. This recognition inspires me to work even harder and strive for more victories to make my country proud. I extend my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has supported, guided, and cheered for me throughout my journey," Manu posted on X.

Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award is India’s highest honour in sports.

After her heartbreaking campaign in the Tokyo Olympics where she fell short of winning a medal due to a pistol malfunction, the 22-year-old Manu created history at the Paris Olympics, becoming the first Indian to win two medals in a single Olympic edition post-independence.

She bagged her first medal at the Paris Olympics when she clinched the bronze in women’s 10 m air pistol. It came a day after she became the first female shooter to reach an Olympic final in an individual event in 20 years. She missed out on a silver medal by 0.1 point.

Just days later, she teamed up with Sarabjot Singh to win bronze in the 10m air pistol mixed team event. She also came tantalizingly close to her historic third medal before finishing fourth in the women's 25m pistol event. Manu was initially tied for third place with former world record holder (25m pistol) Veronika Major of Hungary before she dropped two points in the shoot-off series to hand the Hungarian a podium finish.

Besides her Olympic medals, Manu has won gold medals at the World Championships, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, and Youth Olympic Games.

--IANS

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