NSJF Pulsar Sports Award to be held in Pokhara

KATHMANDU: The 22nd edition of the NSJF Pulsar Sports Award, Nepal’s most prestigious sports awards ceremony, will be held in Pokhara for the first time on September 14, the Nepal Sports Journalists Forum (NSJF) announced on Friday.

Breaking from tradition, the award ceremony is being organized outside the Kathmandu Valley for the first time in its history. The decision to host the event in Pokhara aligns with the ongoing “Visit Pokhara Year” campaign, according to NSJF President Niranjan Adhikari.

“We’ve partnered with our sponsors to bring this landmark edition to Pokhara, and we’re committed to making it unique and grand,” said Adhikari during a press meet at Hotel Yak & Yeti in Kathmandu.

The award ceremony will honor athletes, coaches, and sports personalities who made significant contributions to Nepali sports during the year 2081 BS (2024–25).

This year’s edition will feature 10 award 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 Honor, Special Award, Team of the Year, Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Asian Sports Journalist Award.

Nominees for five of the categories — male, female, youth, coach, and people’s choice — will be announced in the coming days, with five finalists in each. The winners will be revealed during the award ceremony.

No nominations will be announced for the remaining five categories — Team of the Year, Lifetime Achievement, Special Award, Para-athlete Honor, and Asian Sports Journalist Award — as these are directly decided by the organizing committee.

Winners in the five main competitive categories will each receive a Pulsar motorbike, while winners in the remaining categories will receive cash prizes of Rs 100,000 each.

The NSJF also renewed its partnership with Golchha Group, the official distributor of Pulsar motorcycles in Nepal, for another five years. The renewal agreement was signed by NSJF President Niranjan Adhikari and Golchha Group Director Abhimanyu Golchha.

Golchha Group has pledged support worth Rs 4 million in cash and motorbikes for this year’s event, a 33% increase from the previous year. The company has supported the award for 17 consecutive years, making it one of the longest-running sponsorships in Nepali sports.