New Delhi, Jul 20 (IANS): Lallianzuala Chhangte and Indumathi Kathiresan were named the AIFF Best Men's and Women's Players of the Year for 2023-24 season in a glittering AIFF Award Night attended by a galaxy of icons from the sporting world in New Delhi on Friday.
Apart from Chhangte and Indumathi, the other individual award winners were Khalid Jamil (Best Men's Coach), Sukla Dutta (Best Women's Coach), David Lalhlansanga (Promising Men's Player), Neha (Promising Women's Player), Ramachandran Venkatesh (Best Referee) and Ujjal Halder (Best Assistant Referee).
Among the dignitaries present were the Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, the Union Minister, Parliamentary Affairs, Kiren Rijiju, Olympic medal winner Yogeshwar Dutt, India's Davis Cup captain, Rohit Rajpal and many other well-known faces of Indian sport.
The entire top brass of the All India Football Federation, including the AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey, Vice President NA Haris, Treasurer Kipa Ajay, Acting Secretary General M. Satyanarayan, Executive Committee members, and senior officials of the state associations, were also present on the occasion.
While welcoming the minister, AIFF President, Kalyan Chaubey, said, "Today is a day of joy. I would like to thank Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, the Hon’ble Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports, and all my colleagues in the AIFF and the IOA for joining us here. It's a special day as we honour the best players, coaches, referees, member associations and everyone involved in the Indian football fraternity, who help the sport move forward together in our country."
Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya said, "It's an honour to be present in this prestigious event organised by the AIFF and our friend Kalyan Chaubey. It's fantastic to see the best players, coaches, referees, and state associations being felicitated here. Football is the most popular sport in the world.
"I believe that sports isn't only about playing, but about discipline and friendly behaviour. I believe that when we present awards, we recognise their greatness, and in turn encourage the winners to keep winning and perform even better. Let us all pledge to take Indian sports to greater heights," he said.
Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister, Parliamentary Affairs, said, "I'd like to congratulate all the award winners tonight. Thank you for inviting me to such a wonderful evening of Indian football. I'm very happy to be here with my colleague and the new Sports Minister, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya. I'm sure under his and our Prime Minister's guidance, the entire sports fraternity will do better.
"It especially heartens me to see rapid development in grassroots football, the results of which, I'm sure we will see in the next 8-10 years. With the Khelo India and the Youth Leagues, Indian football will have a good future. From the early 1950s and 1960s, Indian football was at a very high standard and we can surely revive it.
"It's not possible to get success immediately. The footballing culture has to go deeper. We need to build that passion and craze in the country. Money and infrastructure are not enough alone. Culture of sports is the most critical, and medals and trophies will follow," he said.
Lallianzuala Chhangte was awarded the AIFF Men's Player of the Year for the second time in a row, becoming only the fifth player to win the award multiple times. The 2023-24 Indian Super League Cup Winner scored 11 goals and assisted seven in all competitions for his club Mumbai City FC and was the highest-scoring Indian in the ISL. For the Indian national team, Chhangte scored against Qatar in Doha in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers in June 2024.
Indumathi Kathiresan was awarded the AIFF Women's Player of the Year, becoming the first player from Tamil Nadu to win the award. The midfielder won the 2023-24 Indian Women's League title with Odisha FC, scoring five goals in the competition. Indumathi won the Best Midfielder award in the IWL. For the Indian national team, she scored against Estonia in the Turkish Women's Cup in February 2024.
Young striker David Lalhlansanga was awarded the AIFF Promising Men's Player of the Year for his fiery goalscoring form in the season. The 22-year-old scored 34 goals for Mohammedan Sporting in last season's I-League, Calcutta Football League and the Durand Cup, helping his side win the former two titles. Lalhlansanga was the top scorer in the CFL and the Durand Cup and earned his first national team call-up in May 2024 for the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.