Prime Minister Narendra Modi has Friday (August 6) announced that India's highest sporting honor Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award will now be called the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award in the honor of India’s hockey wizard.

PM Modi made the announcement after getting many requests from citizens to name the Khel Ratna Award after Major Dhyan Chand following the exceptional performance of both men's and women's hockey teams in the Tokyo Olympics 2020 to “respect the sentiments of citizens across the country”.

Reacting to the development, former Indian cricketer and Lok Sabha MP Gautam Gambhir has hailed Modi’s decision to rename the Khel Ratna award.

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Gambhir told AajTak: “The kind of achievement the men and women's hockey team have managed at the Tokyo Olympics. After this, the entire country is happy that the Khel Ratna Award has been renamed to Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna. I am confident that Dhyan Chand will get Bharat Ratna now.”

Noteworthy, the Khel Ratna award was instituted in 1991-1992 and the first recipient of the prestigious award was Chess legend Viswanathan Anand. The award carries prize money of INR 25 lakh.

Known as The Wizard, Dhyan Chand, a field hockey player, is regarded as one of the greatest hockey players of all time. He played international hockey from 1926 to 1949, scoring over 400 goals in his career, and played key roles in winning gold medals for India at 1928, 1932, and 1936 Olympics.