ESPN, the one-stop destination for sport content, has launched its first annual ESPN.in Awards. It will honour achievements across multiple sports in 2017.
Each year, the awards will recognise the emerging multi-sport landscape in India and the sporting personalities, teams and moments that have risen above the rest and put India on the global stage. India is witnessing a rapid growth in interest and engagement levels of Indian fans for all forms of sports, especially tennis, football, basketball, kabaddi and badminton.
The winners across 11 categories will be selected by 14-member jury panel that includes Abhinav Bindra, Somdev Devvarman, Bhaichung Bhutia, Jagbir Singh, Rohit Brijnath, Venkatesan Devarajan, Nisha Millet, Aparna Popat, Jagdish Kaliraman, Manisha Malhotra, Anju Bobby George, Sharda Ugra, Debayan Sen and Jayaditya Gupta.
Charly Classen, Vice-President and General Manager, ESPN EMEA & South Asia, said, “Exceptional performances and moments through the year give us a reason to be inspired and feel more connected to the sports. These new, annual awards are a part of ESPN’s tradition to recognise the athletes and celebrate the power of sporting excellence in driving fan’s passions for the games and competitions they love.”
Sambit Bal, Editor-in-Chief, ESPN South Asia, said, “It is an exciting time in India with rising active consumption of multi-sport disciplines across the country. ESPN.in is in a prime position to steer sports adoption, serve and support individual sports athletes, and teams and deliver content and coverage for their fans. The awards aim to increase the visibility and conversations around sports beyond cricket.
The awards cherish individuals’ and teams’ performances and is also an acknowledgement of the broader perspective of Indian sports fans.”
The award categories are:
1. Sportsperson of the year (Individual) – Male
2. Sportsperson of the year (Individual) – Female
3. Team of the year
4. Comeback Performance of the year
5. Emerging Athlete of the year (21 or below)
6. Coach of the year
7. Lifetime Achievement Award
8. Sportsperson of the year – Differently Abled
9. Target Tokyo Award
10. Moment of the Year - Public Voting
11. Match of the Year