By Sachit Subba • Off-Field • Sep 06, 2025 19:12 PM • 92 views
The Nepal Sports Journalists Forum (NSJF) has unveiled nominations in four major categories of the prestigious NSJF Pulsar Sports Award 2081. On Saturday, the NSJF's player selection committee announced the nominees for Male Player of the Year, Female Player of the Year, Youth Player of the Year, and Coach of the Year. Earlier, the Forum had already released the shortlist for the People's Choice Award. Winners in the remaining categories — Lifetime Achievement, Para Athlete, Special Award, and the Asian Sports Journalist Award — will be announced during the award ceremony on the 29th of this month.
In the Male Player of the Year category, nominees include cricketers Dipendra Singh Airee and Kushal Bhurtel, wushu athlete Bijay Sinjali, table tennis player Santu Shrestha, and kho kho player Janak Chand. For Female Player of the Year, the shortlist features karateka Erika Gurung, footballer Rekha Poudel, karateka Alisa Raskoti Magar, kho kho player Manmati Dhami, and volleyball player Salina Shrestha.
The Youth Player of the Year category highlights the achievements of athletics' Ajay Bik, karateka Anjali Maharjan, cricketer Pooja Mahato, boxer Swastika, and footballer Samir Tamang. Notably, Pooja Mahato has received a rare double nomination, also being in contention for the People's Choice Award.
Several athletes — Bijay Sinjali, Rekha Poudel, and Pooja Mahato — are competing in both the People's Choice and their respective main award categories, further raising the stakes. In the fiercely contested Coach of the Year category, para-taekwondo coach Kabiraj Negi Lama and karate coach Kushal Shrestha return as strong contenders, joined this time by cricket's Mahesh Rizal and kho kho coach Laxminarayan Vaidya. The five-member selection committee, led by NSJF Secretary Anil Mall Thakuri, finalised the nominations after carefully evaluating athletes and coaches across multiple disciplines.
