'Shouldn't have gone to Olympics, should've been a cricketer' - Manu Bhaker and her dad express disappointment over Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award snub

Manu Bhaker's father expressed his disappointment over his daughter not making it to the 30-athlete list of nominees to bag the Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award for 2024. Manu was not able to make it even to the top 30 on the list, and this did not go well with his father. He regretted making Manu a shooter and felt Cricket would have rather given her the recognition.

Manu's father questioned what else Manu Bhaker had to do to be on the list of the top 30 apart from winning two Bronze medals at the Olympics. Manu's dad felt the need for the government to recognize the efforts of his daughter. "The govt must recognize her efforts," said Bhaker's father.

"I regret putting her in the sport of shooting. I should have instead made her a cricketer. Then, all the awards and accolades would have come her way. She won two Olympic medals in a single edition, no one has ever done that. What else do you expect my child to do for the country?" added Bhaker's father.

'I shouldn't have gone to the Olympics and won medals for the country' - Manu Bhaker quotes his daughter's statement

He further claimed that his daughter was sad not to get the nomination. She revealed that Manu claimed she should not have taken part in the Olympics. "I spoke to Manu, and she was disheartened by all this. She told me 'I shouldn't have gone to the Olympics and won medals for the country. In fact, I shouldn't have become a sportsperson'," added Manu's father in his statement.

A source claimed that Manu had indeed applied her name to the portal. It revealed that Manu had applied her name to the Padma Sri and Padma Bhushan awards as well. The federation has reportedly approached the sports ministry for an explanation over the big snub.

"Manu said she had applied on the portal. If that was the case, then the committee must have considered her name. Whatever the situation, the federation has approached the ministry and requested the officials to include her name," the source revealed.