Mirabai Chanu and Suruchi Singh win Sportswoman of the Year award at Sportstar Aces 2026
Saikhom Mirabai Chanu and Suruchi Singh were named Sportswoman of the Year (Olympic Sports) at the Sportstar Aces Awards 2026, held in Mumbai on Friday.
Mirabai Chanu was recognised for her strong comeback in weightlifting in 2025, while Suruchi was rewarded for an exceptional season in which she rose to World No. 1 within five months of her senior debut in shooting.
The Olympic silver medallist Mirabai returned to competition in 2025, more than a year after finishing fourth at the Paris 2024 Olympics. She marked her comeback with gold in the women’s 48kg category at the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships in Ahmedabad, lifting a total of 193kg (84kg snatch + 109kg clean and jerk). The effort set Commonwealth records in all three categories and secured her direct qualification for the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. She later added a silver medal at the World Weightlifting Championships in Forde, Norway — the first Indian medal at the event in three years.
The 19-year-old Suruchi enjoyed a remarkable run, winning three consecutive individual World Cup titles in Munich, Lima, and Buenos Aires. She also claimed gold in the 10m air pistol mixed team event in Lima with Olympian Saurabh Chaudhary and added two bronze medals at the Asian Shooting Championships. Suruchi capped the season with gold at the World Cup Final in Doha, setting a junior world record score of 245.1.
The 2026 Sportstar Aces Awards are presented by Amul, co-presented by Casagrand in association with SRM Institute of Science and Technology. SBI, Christ University, Bharat Petroleum, LIC, Sports Authority of Telangana, NTPC, Indian Softball Cricket Foundation, Jaquar And Company Private Limited are associate partners. Reva University is the education partner. Blue Star is the cooling partner while Times Now is the telecast partner.
Published on Mar 13, 2026