Kottayam: The selection process for Kerala's biggest sports awards has begun. The Malayala Manorama-Santa Monica Study Abroad Sports Awards are conceptualised to acknowledge and honour the accomplishments of outstanding sportspersons and sports clubs/academies from across the state.

The initiative also intends to promote excellence among budding sportspersons and encourage them to achieve greater success.

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The six awards in two categories – the Manorama Sports Star 2023 and the Manorama Sports Club 2023 – will be determined through a comprehensive nomination and selection process, conducted jointly by Malayala Manorama daily, Manorama News channel, Manoramaonline, and Radio Mango.   

The Manorama Sports Star 2023 will recognise and honour individuals for their extraordinary achievements, whereas the Manorama Sports Club 2023 will acknowledge the persistent and passionate efforts of clubs and academies in unearthing latent talents at grassroots levels. These institutions keep providing youngsters a platform and support their ambitions to become champions even though their contributions largely go unnoticed and unrecognised.

Manorama Sports Star 2023

Six sportspersons will be shortlisted by an expert panel for the prestigious award, which will be open for online public voting. The guidelines for the voting process will be announced shortly.

The SMS and online voting will be done in two phases. The sportsperson with maximum number of votes will receive the Manorama Sports Star 2023 award and a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh. The second and third prize winners will be awarded trophies and a cash prize of Rs 3 lakh and Rs 2 lakh respectively.

Manorama Sports Club 2023

Any registered academy/club active in the field of sports in Kerala is eligible to apply.

Based on the information provided by the applicants, six clubs will be shortlisted by an expert panel appointed by Malayala Manorama.

The panel will visit each of the shortlisted clubs and evaluate their performance.

After a detailed assessment of their past records and contributions to the sports sector during 2023, the expert committee will select three winners in the category. The decision of the selection committee, comprising prominent sports personalities, will be final.

The first-prize winner will be given away the Manorama Sports Club 2023 award and a cash prize of Rs 3 lakh. The second and third place winners will be awarded trophies and a purse of Rs 2 lakh and Rs 1 lakh respectively.

How to apply

The application should contain all the vital information regarding the club/academy, the registration number, details of major sports, non-sports activities being undertaken in the past one year, and achievements in the field. If there are players who have participated in district, state or national-level tournaments, it should be mentioned. Photographs can also be included. There is no specific application form.

Entries should be sent to Sports Club Award, Sports Desk, PB No: 26, Malayala Manorama, K K Road, Kottayam. The last date for filing the application is March 15, 2024. 

For clarifications, call 98460 61306 (between 10 am and 1 pm). Applications can also be sent to sportseditor@mm.co.in 

Terms and conditions

Sports clubs and academies in Kerala recognised by the state government or affiliated with any government organisations can submit entries along with their registration number.

Clubs or academies that are under direct control of central or state governments or those that function on government grants are not eligible to apply. In choosing the recipients for awards, regard will specifically be given to the nominees’ achievements in 2023.

The track record of the applicants, their contributions to the development of sports in the area of operation, conduct of events at local level, participation in non-sporting activities, and training programmes organised by them during the period will also be taken into consideration.

Previous winners

Manorama Sports Star 

2017 – H S Prannoy (badminton)

2018 – Jinson John (athletics) 

2019 – Anish P Rajan (special cricketer)

2020-21 – P R Sreejesh (hockey)

2022 – Sanju Samson (cricket)

Manorama Sports Club

2017 – Payambra Volley Friends Centre, Kozhikode

2018 – Olympic Athletic Club, Palakkad

2019 – Karanthur Pattern Sports Society, Kozhikode

2020-21 - Young Men's Association, Thiruvallam, Thiruvananthapuram

2022 - SB Football Academy, Poovar, Thiruvananthapuram

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