Top 10 biggest names to watch at National Games 2025

Four individual Olympic medalists are participating in the National Games 2025.

The National Games 2025 has begun, and many top athletes will participate. This competition will be important for young talents to come up and compete with already established Indian star players, Olympic and Asian Games medalists. The 38th edition of the National Games will be held in Uttarakhand from 28th January.

A total of 10,000 athletes, including Olympic medalists and world and Asian champions, will represent 29 teams—comprising States, Union Territories (UT) and the Services Sports Control Board (SSCB).

Also Read: National Games 2025 full schedule, venues, dates, sports, all you need to know

Maharashtra are the defending champions of National Games. Last year, they topped the medal tally with 228 medals (80 gold, 69 silver and 79 bronze). Services finished second with 126 medals (66 gold, 27 silver and 33 bronze). Haryana finished third with 192 medals (62 gold, 55 silver and 75 bronze). Let’s look at the top 10 big names to watch out for the 38th National Games.

Biggest players to watch at National Games 2025

#10. Vijay Kumar (Shooting)

The 2012 London Olympics silver medalist, Vijay Kumar, is one of the top names who will play at the upcoming National Games. The 39-year-old veteran will be competing in his pet event in the 25m rapid-fire pistol. Apart from the Olympics, he has won six Commonwealth Games medals (5 gold and 1 silver) and three Asian Games medals (2 silver and 1 bronze). He is the best 25m male shooter India has ever produced. He will look to use his experience and will try to bag the medal.

#9. Tejas Shirse (Athletics)

The 22-year-old youngster has been a rising star in the Indian athletics. The current national record holder in the 110m hurdles and 60m hurdles will look to shatter his national record at the upcoming national games. Tejas recently broke the 60m hurdle national record by clocking 7.65s in Luxembourg. He missed the Olympic cut-off by a small margin and will look to do well for India in the upcoming events.

#8. Jyothi Yarraji (Athletics)

Just like Tejas, Jyothi Yarraji is also a hurdler. She is the current national record holder in the 100m and 60m hurdles. She won the silver medal at the 2022 Asian Games and is the only Indian woman to clock sub 13 at the 100m hurdles. Her personal best is 12.78s and she will look to break that record at the national games 2025. She also competes in the 200m as well and won a silver medal at the 2023 Asian Championships.

Also Read: Athletics: Indian national record holders in each track and field event

#7. Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar (Shooting)

The 23-year-old shooter from Madhya Pradesh, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, competes at the 50m rifle 3 position event, which is considered to be one of the toughest events in shooting. Two-time Olympian Aishwarya will be one of the favourites to win the gold medal at the 38th National Games.

He was part of the 50m rifle 3 position team that won the gold medal at the 2023 World Championships. The 2021 Junior World champion also competes in the 10m air rifle event as well.

#6. Arjun Deshwal (Kabaddi)

The kabaddi sensation Arjun will be one of the top kabaddi players, who will be competing at the 2025 National Games. Arjun was an integral part of the Jaipur Pink Panthers squad at the Pro Kabaddi League and helped them win the 2022 season. He was also the part of 2022 Asian Games squad that won the gold medal. Arjun is known for his aggressive raiding and will represent services.

Also Read: Top 10 PKL stars to watch out for at National Games 2025

#5. Pawan Sehrawat (Kabaddi)

Nicknamed as High Flyer, Pawan is perhaps the most popular kabaddi player among the current lot. Pawan was the captain of the 2022 Asian Games squad and helped the Indian team to win the gold medal defeating Iran in the finals. He is the most expensive player in the history of the Pro Kabaddi League. He was bought by Telugu Titans at a whooping price of 2.60 cr in 2023.

#4. Lakshya Sen (Badminton)

The young sensation of Indian badminton, Lakshya Sen, will be one of the big names to be part of the national games. The 23-year-old from Almora finished a heartbreaking fourth place at the Olympics. After his stint at the Olympics, Lakshya has become very popular among the fans. He also has a World Championships bronze medal to his name. The Commonwealth champion has five BWF World Tour titles to his name and is a clear favourite to win the gold medal for his home state.

Also Read: Top five Indian badminton players with most BWF World Tour titles

#3. Sarabjot Singh (Shooting)

The Paris Olympic bronze medalist in the 10m Air Pistol mixed team category, Sarabojot Singh is one of the high-profile names to be competing at the National Games. The shooter from Haryana won the second medal for the country at the Olympics with his partner Manu Bhaker in the mixed Team. Sarabjot competes in the 10m Air Pistol Individual event as well.

#2. Lovlina Borgohain (Boxing)

One of the most decorated Indian boxers, Lovlina Borgohain, will be the favourite to win the gold medal for her state Assam. The two-time Olympian and the Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist, Lovlina’s presence will add prestige to the boxing event. She is a three-time World Championship medalist and a World Champion as well. She also has the Asian Games silver medal to her name.

#1. Swapnil Kusale (Shooting)

The third shooting medalist from India at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Swapnil will compete in the 50m rifle 3 position category. He will also be the favourite to win the medal at the upcoming National Games. Swapnil is an underrated shooter. Not many counted Swapnil to win the medal at the Olympics. He defied all odds and went on to secure the country’s third medal at the 2024 Olympics. He also won the silver medal at the 2022 Baku World Cup.

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