Karnataka athletes at the felicitation ceremony.
BENGALURU: Karnataka has raised cash rewards for Asian Games medallists to ₹1 crore for gold, ₹75 lakh for silver and ₹50 lakh for bronze, alongside a first-time participation incentive of ₹5 lakh each for all 20 Karnataka athletes who competed in the 2026 Games, according to an announcement from the Youth Empowerment and Sports Department.
The Chief Minister felicitated the State’s medal winners at a department-organised ceremony. The announcement also outlined government recruitment opportunities, a 2% sports reservation in direct recruitment and training assistance under the Guri Olympics programme.
The revised medal rewards replace the earlier amounts of ₹35 lakh for gold, ₹25 lakh for silver and ₹15 lakh for bronze. Eight medal-winning athletes will receive the enhanced awards as well as the ₹5 lakh participation incentive, the department said.
M.R. Poovamma and Pranavi S. Urs each qualify for ₹1.75 crore in medal rewards for a gold and a silver, apart from the participation incentive. Poovamma’s medals were listed in the women’s 4x400m relay and mixed 4x400m relay, while Urs’s medals were in individual golf and the women’s golf team event.
Shreyanka R. Patil, part of the women’s cricket team, and H.S. Mohit, part of the men’s hockey team, were each listed for ₹1 crore gold-medal rewards. Tilottama Sen, in the 50m rifle team event, and Aditi Ashok, in women’s team golf, were each listed for ₹75 lakh silver-medal rewards. Ayush Shetty, in men’s team badminton, and S.S. Sneha, in the 4x100m relay, were each listed for ₹50 lakh bronze-medal rewards.
The 20 participants named for the ₹5 lakh incentive are Yashas Palaksha, Supriya Sindigere Basavaraju, Unnathi Aiyappa, M.R. Poovamma, S.S. Sneha and Sindhu Sri in athletics; Ayush Shetty in badminton; Shreyanka R. Patil in cricket; Keerthi Rangaswamy in track cycling; Fouaad Mirza in equestrian; Aditi Ashok and Pranavi S. Urs in golf; H.S. Mohit in hockey; Tilottama Sen in shooting; Akash Mani, Srihari Nataraj, Dakshin S. and Aneesh Gowda in swimming; Yashaswini Ghorpade in table tennis; and Deepu Mallesh in sport climbing.
The department said eligible Asian Games and Commonwealth Games medallists can be considered for direct appointment to Group B State government posts through a selection committee chaired by the Chief Secretary.
It also cited an October 3 notification introducing a 2% reservation for accomplished sportspersons in direct recruitment to Group A, B, C and D government posts.
Asian Games medallists M.R. Poovamma, S.S. Sneha and Shreyanka Patil, along with Commonwealth Games medallist Shilpa K.S., have been included in the Guri Olympics programme for 2026–27. Each will receive ₹10 lakh this year for pre-Olympic training and preparation, according to the announcement.
About the Author
