Some say nothing succeeds like success while some others say there is always a scope of improvement in whatever you do. To compile a list of Indian sportspersons having demonstrated an exemplary level of commitment in sports this year is not an easy task.

The Best Sportsperson of the Year 2016 Honour goes to…

Interestingly, not just cricket, Indian players have performed outstandingly at other sports too in 2016. Well, everyone has his or her own perception on deciding who should get the best sportsperson honour, but to be frank, all sportspersons deserve this honour for their relentless sincerity and dedication for the game.

Read here to know who wins the “Best Sportsperson of the Year Honour”.

Starting from India’s most famous game, cricket, there were many happy moments. Virat Kohli is currently the most successful sportsperson in this year. His sublime run-riots with 1215 test runs and 17-test undefeated streak as a captain certainly makes him one of the top contenders for the honour.

R Ashwin also comes close to win this honour. It was his year. He grabbed 72 wickets with eight five-for in an innings and three 10-wicket hauls with 612-run (including two tons) in just 12 test matches. No doubt, the super inspirational Virat Kohli and R Ashwin made this year as their own.

Then comes the Olympics, and here we have a lot of choices to choose the winner. But to be honest, this quadrennial event will be mostly remembered for the girls’ power. These champion athletes have performed at the peak where it mattered most – at the gala events in Rio Olympics 2016 at Rio de Janeiro.

Here we have the likes of PV Sindhu, Sakshi Malik and Dipa Karmakar who have given wonderful moments to the nation. They have won medals and zillions of hearts too. We got many of our champions within these girls. They stood up to the occasion and made all of us proud with their accomplishments.

Also Read: Flashback 2016: Top Performances of India in Sports

If we go by the medals tally, then PV Sindhu should top the chart and get this “best Indian sportsperson of 2016” tag but Badminton is something that we are well aware of. Sakshi Malik winning the Olympics bronze in silver was an astonishing achievement too. However, in the relentless battle towards the “great medal quest” at Olympics, we can’t overlook the superwoman – Dipa Karmakar.

Her top-class performance at the Rio Olympics 2016 in the gymnastic division was something which clearly stunned the world and became the first Indian to qualify for the said event.

Dipa Karmakar: The winner all the way

Hailing from Agartala (Tripura), a relatively small capital city, Dipa waged a courageous battle to reach Rio de Janeiro straight from the India’s North Eastern state. Primarily, it was her ‘flat feet’ that created quite a lot of trouble for the suave girl. Her rigorous training sessions under the meticulous Bishweshwar Nandi (coach) helped the little Dipa lots and soon she developed an arc in her foot necessary to perform at gymnastics.

Dipa Karmakar

The 23-year-old’s tryst with destiny started when she miraculously performed ‘Produnova’ vault at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland. She won a bronze medal in that tournament and became the first Indian woman to get a gymnastics medal.

Two years later, a history was rewritten again at late night hours. Dipa Karmakar participated at the gala gymnastics event at Rio Olympics and successfully performed the extremely risky Produnova move.

She came fourth and couldn’t win an Olympics medal by a whisker but her achievement was no lesser than an Olympics gold medal. In the illustrious history of gymnastics, only five women have performed “Produnova” vault and Indians are proud that Dipa Karmakar did the death-defying move in such a spectacular manner. While performing the move the “glory for the nation” was on top of her mind and eventually she didn’t give even an iota of thought on her life. Sublime, stupendous and a surreal accomplishment by Dipa Karmakar. Kudos! Hats off!

She might have lost an Olympic medal by a fraction of a second but not the “Best Sportsperson of the Year honour – that fans are conferring to her via thesportsmirror website. Many Congrats and best wishes.

Tags: Best Sportsperson, Dipa Karmakar, India, Produnova, PV Sindhu, Rio Olympics 2016, Sakshi Malik, Virat Kohli, Year 2016