New Delhi:
Commonwealth Games gold medallist wrestler Sushil Kumar and silver medal winning shooter Deepak Sharma were felicitated by the Ministry of Steel in New Delhi at Udyog Bhavan on Monday.
Wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, who was supposed to be felicitated, couldn't make it to the function due to poor health.
After felicitating the sportsmen, Union Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh congratulated them on their excellent performance during the Games and also announced cash rewards of Rs 5 lakh each for the two gold medallists and Rs 3 lakh for Deepak Sharma.
Meanwhile, Sushil Kumar's coach Yashvir Singh, who became the first Indian to win the International Wrestling Federation's 'Coach of the Year' award recently, was also feliciatated on the occasion.
Speaking during the function, Virbhadra Singh said, "It is matter of great satisfaction that these young sportsmen realised their aspiration of bringing honour and glory to India at the Games."
Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) Chairman C S Verma was also present at the function as the company provides financial support to all these three sportspersons for their training and other requirements.
Yogeshwar Dutt, who had won gold medals in the 2003 and 2005 Commonwealth Wrestling held in Canada and South Africa, respectively, overcame a career-threatening knee injury last year to win a gold in the Delhi Games.
The wrestler, who also received the Arjuna Award in 2008-09, is now keen to win a gold at the forthcoming Asian Games.
However, superstar of Indian wrestling Sushil re-confirmed that he would not be able to make it to the Asian Games in China next month because of shoulder and neck injuries.
"I need time to recover from my injuries," admitted Sushil, adding, "The report is going to come in a couple of days and accordingly the doctor will give me instructions when can I be back in action."
Marksman Sharma, who has won two bronze and a silver medal in major international competitions and 31 medals, including three gold, in national level shooting championships, said he was looking forward to the Asian Games but need to work on a few technical aspects.
"I need to work on some technicalities before the Asian Games. Once the camp starts, I would like to improve on a few technical points," said Deepak.