Ajay Thakur (born 1 May 1987) is an Indian professional Kabaddi player and the former captain of the Indian National Kabaddi Team.He is widely regarded as one of the Greatest Players Of All Time.He was part of the national teams which won 2016 Kabaddi World Cup and gold medal at 2014 Asian Games. He was awarded the Padma Shri and Arjuna Award in 2019.

Ajay Thakur
Personal information
Full nameAjay Thakur
Nickname(s)Ice Man, King of Kabaddi
NationalityIndian
CitizenshipIndian
Born (1987-05-01) 1 May 1987 (age 37)
Dabhota, Nalagarh, Himachal Pradesh, India
Alma materGovernment Post Graduation College, Nalagarh
Occupation(s)DSP, Kabaddi Player
Years active2007-present
Height186 cm (6 ft 1 in)
Weight76 kg (168 lb)
SpouseSandeep Rana
Police career
Allegiance India
Department Police Department
BranchHimachal Pradesh Police[1]
Service years2017-present
Rank DSP
Awards
Sport
CountryIndia
SportKabaddi
PositionRaider
KabaddiPro Kabaddi League
ClubBengaluru Bulls 2014-2015

Puneri Paltan 2016-2017 Tamil Thalaivas 2017-2020

Dabang Delhi 2021-2022
TeamIndia national kabaddi team, Himachal Pradesh
Coached byBaskaran Kasinathan, Balwan Singh
Medal record
Representing  India
Asian Games
Gold medal – first place 2014 Incheon Team
Bronze medal – third place 2018 Jakarta Team
2016 Kabaddi World Cup
Gold medal – first place 2016 Ahmadabad Team
Asian Kabaddi Championship
Gold medal – first place 2017 Gorgan Team
2018 Dubai Kabaddi Masters
Gold medal – first place 2018 Dubai Team
Asian Indoor Games
Gold medal – first place 2007 Incheon Team
Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games
Gold medal – first place 2013 Incheon Team

He is a member of Himachal Pradesh Police Service cadre where he currently serves as a Deputy superintendent of police.

Early life

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Thakur was born in Dabhota village of Nalagarh, Himachal Pradesh to Rajinder Kaur and Chottu Ram.[2] He was inspired by his cousin Rakesh who had already represented India in Kabaddi at international level. He married Sandeep Rana on April 10, 2019.[2]

Career

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Ajay Thakur has been described as one of the best Indian raiders.[3] He represented his employer Air India at the Industrial National Championships.[4] He has also captained India team in 2017 and led them to gold. He will also lead the Himachal men's team at the 67th Senior Nationals Kabaddi Championship 2020.[5]

He is a member of Himachal Pradesh Police Service cadre where he currently serves as a Deputy superintendent of police.[6]

Pro Kabaddi League

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In Season 1, Thakur played 15 matches and scored 122 raid points as well as 5 tackle points while playing for Bengaluru Bulls.[7]

In season 2, Thakur played 13 matches and scored 79 raid points as well as 1 tackle point while playing for Bengaluru Bulls.

In season 3, Thakur played 14 matches and scored 52 raid points as well as 4 tackle points while playing for Puneri Paltan.

In season 4, Thakur played 16 matches and scored 63 raid points as well as 1 tackle point while playing for Puneri Paltan.

In season 5, Ajay Thakur played 22 matches and scored 213 raid points as well as 9 tackle points while playing for Tamil Thalaivas.

In season 6, Ajay Thakur played 22 matches and scored 203 raid points as well as 1 tackle point while playing for Tamil Thalaivas.

In season 7, Ajay Thakur played 13 matches and scored 58 raid points while playing for Tamil Thalaivas.

Kabaddi World Cup 2016

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He was the no.1 raider with most raid points and Ajay was the overall highest point scorer with 68 points.

India while playing Iran in the Kabaddi World Cup 2016 final, was in a trailing situation. In this situation, came Ajay scoring a 4-point raid to take India to the lead. He was also the Man of the Tournament in Kabaddi World Cup 2016.

Thakur was placed fourth among the best performing raiders in Season 1 of Pro kabaddi league.

[8][9]

Achievements

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His awards and achievements include:

  • Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games Kabaddi - Gold Medal [2013]
  • Gold Medal at Kabaddi at the 2007 Asian Indoor Games
  • 2014 Asian Games - Gold Medal.
  • Asian Kabaddi Championship 2017(Gorgan, Iran) - Gold Medal.
  • World Cup 2016 (Ahmedabad, India) - Gold medal
  • Asian Games 2018 (Jakarta, Indonesia)- Bronze Medal
  • Padma Shri award (2019)
  • Arjuna Award (2019)

References

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  1. ^ "Ajay Thakur DSP Appointment letter" (PDF). Himachal Pradesh Police.
  2. ^ a b "Kabaddi star ties the knot". The Tribune. Tribune News Service. 11 April 2019. Archived from the original on 16 September 2022.
  3. ^ Lasrado, Svetlana (21 July 2014). "Bengaluru Bulls gear up for Pro Kabbadi League". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 14 August 2014.
  4. ^ "Air-India, Haryana Sports emerge champs - Free Press Journal". Archived from the original on 10 September 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
  5. ^ "Himachal Pradesh men's and women's squad for the 67th Senior National Kabaddi Championship announced". Retrieved 6 March 2020.
  6. ^ "Kabaddi star Ajay Thakur takes up police duty in Himachal Pradesh during Covid-19 lockdown". India Today. 26 March 2020. Archived from the original on 30 March 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  7. ^ "Ajay Thakur profile - Age, Raid Points, Tackles, Position, Team, Records, Profile - vivo Pro Kabaddi".
  8. ^ "Ajay Thakur". Bengaluru Bulls. Archived from the original on 5 September 2014.
  9. ^ "Kabaddi fever peaks for tonight's finale". Times of India. TNN. 31 August 2014.