Gaurav Khanna

Gaurav Khanna is a badminton coach widely credited with the rise of para badminton in India. He was named for the Padma Shri in 2024 in the field of sports, from Uttar Pradesh ^[1].

Coach

Khanna was born on 11 December 1975 and studied commerce, physical education and yoga at Lucknow University ^[2]. He later qualified as a badminton coach at the National Institute of Sports and as a master trainer in sports for people with disabilities ^[2].

To coach deaf athletes he learned sign language, and his players went on to win medals at the Deaflympics and other international events ^[2]. In 2011 he was the continental coach of the Asian deaf badminton team ^[2].

Para badminton

He set up what his citation calls India’s first residential badminton academy for athletes with disabilities, where players from across the country train free of charge; his home in Lucknow is known as the “Drona Paralympic House” ^[2]. Since he became head national coach in 2015, India’s para badminton players have won 871 medals at recognised international events, including the Asian Para Games, world championships and the Tokyo Paralympics ^[2].

From 2011 to 2015 he also helped design a national programme that has trained more than 5,000 master trainers in sport for people with disabilities ^[2]. He is a qualified international umpire and referee ^[2].

Honours

He received Uttar Pradesh’s Yash Bharati award in 2016 and, in 2020, became the first para badminton coach to win the Dronacharya Award ^[2].