Mumbai: Sushil Kumar, who is the only Indian to win two back to back individual medals in the Olympics has been nominated for the Padma Bhushan award along with cricketer, Rahul Dravid. Sushil, who won the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award in 2009 and the Padma Shri award in 2011 feels that the recommendation for Padma Bhushan in itself is the recognition of the years of hard work he has put in the sport.
 

The Padma Bhushan award is the third highest civilian honor of India. "I indeed feel privileged and honored at being recommended for this recognition. This award will be another recognition of my hard work and determination." Sushil said. I am the first Indian athlete to win two consecutive Olympic medals. We gave our everything to this sport and this award will help in raising the profile of the game. Such recognitions always help in attracting more youngsters towards the sport. I am thankful to the Sports Ministry for recommending my name. I feel happy and excited. There are a lot of people who have supported me and helped me reach where I am today. My family, my wife, my team at Percept and my fellow Wrestlers. Really thankful to each and everyone of them", he added.
 

Sushil Kumar comes from a family of wrestlers and has been training since over 14 years in the sport. After a bronze in Beijing and a silver in London, Sushil is all set for an outstanding match in the 2016 Olympics. He aspires to make India proud each time he represents the country on an international level.