Kathmandu: The Nepal Sports Journalists Forum (NSJF) on Wednesday announced that the 23rd edition of the annual NSJF Pulsar Sports Award will be held on September 3 in Kathmandu.

The announcement was made at a press conference where NSJF also renewed its long-standing sponsorship agreement with the Golchha Group for the 19th consecutive year.

NSJF President Niranjan Adhikari and Golchha Group Director Abhimanyu Golchha signed the sponsorship agreement on behalf of their respective organisations.

Under the agreement, the Golchha Group, the title sponsor of the event, will provide sponsorship worth Rs 4.5 million, including five Pulsar motorcycles and a cash purse of Rs 1.7 million.

NSJF General Secretary Anjan Khadka announced that awards will be presented in nine categories: Male Player of the Year, Female Player of the Year, Youth Player of the Year, Coach of the Year, People’s Choice Award, Para Athlete Award, Special Award, Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Asian Sports Journalist Award, which will be presented to an international sports journalist.

The winners of the Male, Female, Youth, Coach and People’s Choice categories will each receive a Pulsar motorcycle, while recipients of the Special Award, Lifetime Achievement Award and Para Athlete Award will receive a cash prize of Rs 100,000 each.

The five nominees in the People’s Choice, Male, Female, Youth and Coach categories will be unveiled in the coming days. The People’s Choice Award winner will be decided through voting, while winners in the remaining competitive categories will be selected by an NSJF-appointed selection committee.

Speaking at the event, Golchha Group Director Abhimanyu Golchha described the NSJF Pulsar Sports Award as an integral part of the company’s sporting journey.

“We’re proud to continue supporting NSJF and Nepali sports,” he said.

Golchha also highlighted the Group’s continued investment in Nepali sports through its support for football leagues, cricket and grassroots sports development across the country.

Last year’s award winners included cricketer Dipendra Singh Airee (Male Player of the Year), karateka Arika Gurung (Female Player of the Year), cricketer Puja Mahato (Youth Player of the Year), para taekwondo coach Kabiraj Negi Lama (Coach of the Year) and volleyball player Homal Sonari (People’s Choice Award). Other recipients included taekwondo coach Tulsi Kumar Gurung (Special Award), Prabha Angdembe (Para Athlete Award), Khadga Ranabhat (Lifetime Achievement Award) and Bangladeshi sports journalist Rana Hassan (Asian Sports Journalist Award).