New Delhi, Jan 3 (PTI) India's rising chess star, Vantika Agrawal, has described winning the Arjuna Award as one of the "most defining moments" of her career and her next big goal is to break into top 10 women player's global rankings and secure the Grandmaster title.

"I am deeply honoured to receive the Arjuna Award. Winning this award is one of the most defining moments of my career and a major personal milestone in my life," Vantika said.

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"This recognition is a testament to my hard work, the dedication of my coaches, and the unwavering support of my family and mentors, who have been guiding lights throughout my journey," she added, expressing her gratitude to the Pravaha Foundation and MGD1 for their support.

Vantika, who currently holds 2411 points, delivered an outstanding performance during India's historic Chess Olympiad victory in 2024. As a result, she climbed 12 places in the global rankings and earned 13 ELO points.

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"Chess has given me the privilege to represent my country, and this honour fuels my ambition to elevate Indian chess to even greater heights," said the 39th ranked player in the world women's classical rankings.

"My goals include breaking into the top 10 women players worldwide, earning the Grandmaster title, and inspiring a new generation of Indian chess players, especially women, to believe in their potential and strive for excellence," she added.

Arjuna Award a great achievement, but emotion hasn't hit yet: Abhay

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Indian squash player Abhay Singh was enjoying a quick nap in a cab on his way to training in England when he received a congratulatory message also bearing the news of him being chosen for the Arjuna honour.

The 25-year-old, who aims to break into the top 30 of world rankings this year, termed the honour a significant achievement but admitted that the emotion has yet to fully sink in.

"Yeah, it's a great achievement, maybe it'll hit me hard when I'm actually there on the 17th. I'm tucked away in a training camp in the cold in England right now, so it's a little hard to have this sink in," said world number 54 Abhay, who won a team gold and a mixed doubles bronze in 2023.

"It's more for the sacrifices my team and family have made and their investment in me. I hope they're happy and proud," he added.

When asked how he came to know about the award, Abhay shared, "I was sleeping in an Uber on the way to training, and someone sent me a congratulations message, which is how I found out, to be honest. The emotion hasn't hit yet, maybe soon when it's all happening in Delhi."

On his parents' reaction, Abhay, who had helped India secure a fifth-place finish at the recent World Squash Team Championships, said their excitement was typical.

"Parents are always the same, dad was excited just like he was after the Asian Games final, and mom's excited but I think just more so waiting to have me back home from all my long trips away."

Abhay, currently training in England, will be competing in several events in the USA in the upcoming season before heading back to India for the National Games in Dehradun.

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