Erica Gurung, representing Karate, and Rohit Kumar Paudel, a cricketer, have been honored as the Sportswomen and Sportsman of the Year at the NSJF Pulsar Sports Awards 2080.

The awards ceremony, hosted by the Nepal Sports Journalist Forum (NSJF) on Friday, took place at the Nepal Pragya Foundation. Erica Gurung, who clinched a silver medal at the 19th Asian Games, was named the best female athlete of the year. She competed against other top nominees including Sabitra Bhandari (football), Rubina Chhetri (cricket), Santoshi Shrestha (athletics), and Rajvanshi (Kabaddi).

In the men's category, Rohit Kumar Paudel, also a cricket player, emerged victorious over other distinguished nominees such as Dipendra Singh Airi (cricket), Rohit Paudel (karate), Mohammad Sekhu Alam (karate), Anant Tamang (football), and Subas Tamang (golf). This year, the awards were based on the top five nominees rather than the top three from previous editions.

Youth and Sports Minister Tejulal Chaudhary presented Erica with her award, which included a Pulsar NS 200 motorbike. Rohit Kumar Paudel received the same motorbike for his achievement.

The People’s Choice Award was won by volleyball’s Kavita Bhatt, who was chosen through a combination of Eseva voting, forum members’ votes, Facebook likes, and head coach votes. Kavita received a Pulsar NS 400 motorbike for garnering 56 percent of the votes. Other nominees for this award included Manmati Bista (Kabaddi), Preeti Rai (Football), Shriram Shrestha (Rugby), and Gulsan Jha (Cricket).

Kushal Shrestha was recognized as the Coach of the Year, earning a Pulsar NS 200 motorbike. Under his guidance, Nepal achieved notable success at various championships, including the 19th Asian Games and the 10th World Karate Championship in Indonesia. He beat out other nominees like Kaviraj Negi Lama (Para Taekwondo) and Monty Desai (Cricket).

Hemant Pal, a 16-year-old weightlifter, was awarded Youth Player of the Year. He received a Pulsar NS 200 motorbike and was recognized for his achievements at the Asian Junior Weightlifting Championships. Bagmati Province Youth and Sports Minister Meenkrishna Maharjan presented him with the award.

Palesha Govardhan was honored with the NSJF Para Athlete Award for becoming the first Nepali athlete to win a bronze medal at the 4th Para Asian Games. The award was presented by National Sports Council Member Secretary Tanklal Ghising.

The Lifetime Achievement Award went to Vinayraj Pandey, former President of the Nepal Cricket Association, who was presented with the award by NSJF President Durganath Subedi and General Secretary Prajwal Oli. Volleyball coach Kumar Rai received a Special Award for his two decades of contribution to the sport, presented by AIPS Asia President Hee Dong Jung.

The women's Kabaddi team, which earned a bronze medal at the 19th Asian Games, was named Team of the Year, with the award presented by Nepal Judo Association President Deepak Harsh Brajacharya.

The Asian Sports Journalist Award was given to Hee Dong Jung, AIPS Asia President, presented by Surya Nepal Pvt Ltd Brand Manager.

In addition, journalists from six countries, including Durganath Subedi, received the AIPS Asia Legends Award. The event was sponsored by Hansraj Hulaschand & Company Pvt Ltd, with Pulsar Motorcycles and several other partners supporting the awards.