Shami, Vaishali among winners at Sportstar Aces Awards 2024

Shami bagged 24 wickets to emerge as the top wicket-taker of the ODI World Cup 2023 while Vaishali was a member of the Indian women’s chess team, which won the silver medal at the Asian Games.

Published : Feb 08, 2024 22:28 IST , Mumbai - 2 MINS READ

Award winners and jury members posing for a group picture during the Sportstar ACES Awards 2024 held in Mumbai on Thursday, February 08, 2024. | Photo Credit:  K.R Deepak / The Hindu

India cricketer Mohammed Shami and chess grandmaster R. Vaishali won the ‘Sportsman of the Year (Team Sports)’ and ‘Sportswoman of the Year (Individual)‘ awards, respectively at the Sportstar ACES Awards 2024 held at the Taj Mahal Palace here on Thursday.

Shami bagged 24 wickets to emerge as the top wicket-taker of the ODI World Cup 2023. The pacer also recorded an incredible seven for 57 against New Zealand during the World Cup.

Vaishali was a member of the Indian women’s chess team, which won the silver medal at the Asian Games. At the Qatar Masters 2023, she earned her final Grandmaster norm.

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“I am from a place which has no facilities. My journey has hinged on luck, effort, and support from my family and friends. I am grateful for everything - even a person who has contributed 1 per cent to my success,” Shami said.

“It is amazing to be among so many achievers in this hall. It is truly inspiring to be here,” Vaishali said.

Former Indian cricket team captain Sunil Gavaskar, the ACES Awards 2024 jury chairman, paid tribute to all the winners.

“With the kind of performances that we keep seeing in Indian sports, it gets more and more difficult to pick the award winners every year. Looking at videos and reading about the nominees gives the jurors so much joy. It is like you are floating in [the] air. I am sure that these incredible feats will serve as an inspiration for young sportspersons,” Gavaskar said.

The batting maestro had a word of advice for young sportspersons. “I am very grateful to Indian cricket. I am here today only because of Indian cricket. So to all sportspersons, I say - never forget your institution and your roots,” Gavaskar said.

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N. Ram, Director (The Hindu Group Publishing Private Limited), Nirmala Lakshman, Chairperson (The Hindu Group Publishing Private Limited), and N. Murali, Director (The Hindu Group Publishing Private Limited) presented awards to the winners.

The event is presented by Amul, powered by IDFC First Bank in association with Indian Oil. The associate partners are LIC India, State Bank of India, Greyon Cosmetic, India Cements, United India Insurance, NTPC, and Ramaiah University. The realty partner is Casagrand, with online grocery partner Big Basket, colour partner Nippon Paint and education partner Christ University. The co-sponsors are Pratiyogita Darpan, SSVM, PSG, Signpost, Digital OOH Partner, NDTV, Broadcast Partner, WordsWork, PR Partner and Dailyhunt, Online Streaming Partner.

Complete Winners List
SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR (TRACK AND FIELD): MEN’S RELAY TEAM
SPORTSWOMAN OF THE YEAR (TRACK AND FIELD): PARUL CHAUDHARY
SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR (TEAM SPORTS): HARDIK SINGH, MOHAMMED SHAMI
SPORTSWOMAN OF THE YEAR (TEAM SPORTS): VANDANA KATARIYA
SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR (INDIVIDUAL): SATWIKSAIRAJ RANKIREDDY, CHIRAG SHETTY
SPORTSWOMAN OF THE YEAR (INDIVIDUAL): RAMESHBABU VAISHALI, SIFT KAUR SAMRA
SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR (PARASPORTS): SUMIT ANTIL
SPORTSWOMAN OF THE YEAR (PARASPORTS): THULASIMATHI MURUGESAN
COACH OF THE YEAR: RAHUL DRAVID
YOUNG ACHIEVER OF THE YEAR (MALE): PRATHAMESH SAMADHAN JAWKAR
YOUNG ACHIEVER OF THE YEAR (FEMALE): TILOTTAMA SEN
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD: CHANDU BORDE, KARNAM MALLESWARI
SPORTSTAR OF THE YEAR (MALE): NEERAJ CHOPRA
SPORTSTAR OF THE YEAR (FEMALE): SHEETAL DEVI
NATIONAL TEAM OF THE YEAR: INDIA MEN’S CRICKET TEAM
CLUB/STATE TEAM OF THE YEAR: SAURASHTRA CRICKET TEAM
MOMENT OF THE YEAR: SHEETAL DEVI HITS THE BULLSYE
INTERNATIONAL ICON: MUTTIAH MURALITHARAN
BEST STATE FOR THE PROMOTION OF SPORT: TAMIL NADU
BEST PSU FOR THE PROMOTION OF SPORT: NTPC LTD
BEST CORPORATE FOR THE PROMOTION OF SPORT: TATA STEEL LTD
BEST UNIVERSITY FOR THE PROMOTION OF SPORT: SRM INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
SPORT FOR SOCIAL GOOD: SHRI MATA VAISHNO DEVI SHRINE BOARD
ACE OF ACES AWARD: ROHAN BOPANNA