Sports and Awards for the Assam Police Constable (AB & UB) Exam
Sports and Awards is a compact and rewarding part of the General Knowledge paper. The questions do not follow the day's results; they follow a fixed cabinet of trophies, honours and games that the examiner opens again and again. A candidate who learns which trophy belongs to which game, which award is the highest in which field, and how many players make up a team will collect these marks with very little effort. This page sets out the awards of India in order of rank, the sports awards, the famous cups and trophies, the number of players in the team games, the technical terms of the major games, and the sporting face of Assam and the North East. The facts follow publicly available official sources and standard reference material, and the page is reviewed before it is published.
How the Sports and Awards Portion Is Set
A question in this section usually gives one half of a pair and asks for the other half. It may give a trophy and ask for the game, give a game and ask for the number of players, give an award and ask for the field, or give a term and ask for the game. Because the pairs never change, this topic rewards a well-made list far more than it rewards reading.
The Highest Civilian and Gallantry Awards
The highest civilian award of India is the Bharat Ratna, which was instituted in 1954 and is given without any distinction of caste, occupation or sex. Below it come the Padma Vibhushan, the Padma Bhushan and the Padma Shri, in that order. Among the gallantry awards, the Param Vir Chakra is the highest award for valour in war, and the Ashoka Chakra is the highest award for valour in peacetime. The Maha Vir Chakra and the Kirti Chakra stand second in war and peacetime respectively, and the Vir Chakra and the Shaurya Chakra stand third. The Bharat Ratna was once given to a sportsperson, Sachin Tendulkar, who received it in 2014.
The Sports Awards of India
The highest sporting honour of the country is the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, which was earlier known simply as the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and was renamed in 2021 after the hockey legend. The Arjuna Award is given for outstanding performance in a sport over a period of time, and the Dronacharya Award is given to coaches. The Dhyan Chand Award is given for lifetime achievement in sports, and the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award is given for adventure. The Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar recognises institutions and companies that support sport, and the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy is given to the best university in sports.
Major Trophies and the Games They Belong To
The examination draws its trophy questions from a fixed list, and the safest method is to learn the game first and the trophy next.
- Cricket: the Ranji Trophy for first-class cricket, the Duleep Trophy, the Irani Cup, the Vijay Hazare Trophy for one-day cricket, the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy for Twenty20, and the Ashes for the England and Australia series.
- Football: the Santosh Trophy for the state teams, the Durand Cup, the Federation Cup, and the Subroto Cup for school football.
- Hockey: the Agha Khan Cup and the Beighton Cup.
- Badminton: the Thomas Cup for the men's team, the Uber Cup for the women's team, and the Sudirman Cup for the mixed team.
- Tennis: the Davis Cup for the men's team, and the Billie Jean King Cup for the women's team.
- Golf: the Ryder Cup. Polo: the Ezra Cup.
Number of Players in Team Games
A very common one-mark question asks for the number of players on a side. The main games are given here.
- Cricket, football and hockey: eleven players each.
- Kabaddi, water polo and netball: seven players each.
- Volleyball: six players. Basketball: five players. Baseball: nine players.
- Rugby: fifteen players. Polo: four players.
Technical Terms of the Major Games
Another reliable question gives a term and asks for the game. In cricket, the terms are a googly, a yorker, a leg break and a silly point. In football, a hat-trick, an offside and a penalty kick. In hockey, a bully, a dribble and a penalty corner. In badminton, a smash and a drop. In tennis, a deuce, an ace and a volley. In chess, checkmate and stalemate. In boxing, a knock-out and a bout. In billiards and snooker, a break and a cue. Learning the terms game by game prevents the answers from getting mixed.
International Events and Sports Bodies
The candidate should know the great events and the bodies that run them. The Olympic Games are held every four years and are conducted by the International Olympic Committee, whose headquarters is at Lausanne in Switzerland. The Commonwealth Games bring together the members of the Commonwealth, and the Asian Games are held under the Olympic Council of Asia. Football is governed by the International Federation of Association Football, with headquarters at Zurich; cricket by the International Cricket Council, with headquarters at Dubai; and the national body for cricket in India is the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
Assam and the North East in Sports
For an Assam recruitment paper, the local sporting record is worth knowing. Assam has given the country the boxers Shiva Thapa and Lovlina Borgohain, the latter an Olympic medallist in boxing, and the athlete Bhogeswar Baruah, who was among the first from the state to win the Arjuna Award. The Khelo India Youth Games were held in Guwahati in 2020, and the city's stadiums and the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium are well known. The state takes pride in its football culture and in the large following for cricket across the region.
Common Traps in This Block
- Mixing the Thomas Cup with the Uber Cup.
- Writing the number of players for kabaddi as six instead of seven.
- Confusing the Param Vir Chakra with the Ashoka Chakra.
- Attributing the Dronacharya Award to a player instead of a coach.
- Mixing the Santosh Trophy, a football trophy, with a hockey trophy.
High-Yield Facts to Memorise
- Bharat Ratna is the highest civilian award; the Param Vir Chakra is the highest gallantry award.
- The Khel Ratna is now the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award.
- The Ranji Trophy is for cricket and the Santosh Trophy for football.
- Kabaddi has seven players and volleyball six.
- The Olympic Games are held every four years under the International Olympic Committee.
A Revision Plan for This Block
- Make three columns: game, trophy and number of players, and fill them together.
- Learn the awards in order of rank from top to bottom.
- Write the technical terms under their game and revise them game by game.
- Keep one page for the sports bodies with their headquarters.
- Revise the Assam and North East sportspersons separately because they carry extra weight.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the highest sporting award of India?
The Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award is the highest sporting honour of India. It was earlier called the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and was renamed in 2021 in memory of the hockey legend Dhyan Chand.
How many players are there in a kabaddi team?
A kabaddi team has seven players on the mat. Volleyball has six and basketball five, so the three are best learnt together to avoid confusion.
Which trophy is associated with football in India?
The Santosh Trophy is the football trophy contested by the state teams of India. The Durand Cup is another famous football tournament, while the Ranji Trophy belongs to cricket.
What is the difference between the Param Vir Chakra and the Ashoka Chakra?
The Param Vir Chakra is the highest award for gallantry in wartime, while the Ashoka Chakra is the highest award for gallantry in peacetime. Both are among the highest honours of the country.
Who was the first sportsperson to receive the Bharat Ratna?
Sachin Tendulkar received the Bharat Ratna in 2014 and was the first sportsperson to be given the award. He is also the youngest recipient of the honour.