On Saturday, Prashanti Singh, former captain of the Indian women's national basketball team, received the Padma Shri award from President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Prashanti, one of the most decorated Indian women's basketball players of all-time, took to Twitter to share her emotions on receiving the honor:
I feel honoured and humbled to be conferred with prestigious #PadmaAward .Thanks to all my family,friends,well-wishers for supporting me. pic.twitter.com/p36vyHs0DN
— Prashanti Singh (@prashanti14) March 16, 2019
She was one of eight sports personalities among 94 people listed as Padma Shri recipients.
The Padma Shri is the fourth-highest honor presented to a civilian after the Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan.
The 'Padma' awards were first instituted in 1954 and were awarded to Indian citizens to recognize their contribution in various spheres of activity such as arts, education, industry, science, sports, literature, medicine, social service, and public affairs.