Amarjeet Singh, an athlete of international repute from Amritsar, is among the sportspersons who received the prestigious Maharaja Ranjit Singh Award for 2026, regarded as the highest sports honour conferred by the Punjab Government on athletes. Amarjeet, who works as a Ticket Checking Inspector with the Ferozepur Railway Division, received a cash award of Rs 4 lakh and was among the players honoured for their achievements during the 2020 cycle.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday conferred the prestigious Maharaja Ranjit Singh Award on 87 players and also honoured 1,070 medal-winning sportspersons from various disciplines.
Coming from a family of cyclists, Amarjeet inherited his passion for the sport from his father, Bawa Singh, and his uncle, both of whom are associated with cycling as coaches and former cyclists. Amarjeet has several achievements to his credit, including an individual national record on track cycling, and has represented India at the World Cycling Championships.
In 2018, he won a silver medal in the Team Sprint event at the Asia Cup held in New Delhi. In 2019, he clinched a gold medal at the Track Asia Cup in Thailand and secured a bronze medal in the Sprint event at the Asian Championships, also held in Thailand. In 2020, he created a national record in the 1-km Time Trial event. He further added to his achievements by winning a bronze medal at the National Games held in Gujarat in 2022.
“I feel immensely proud to have represented and excelled in a sport that usually does not find mainstream recognition,” Amarjeet said. He has also created a remarkable record by winning gold medals continuously for 10 years in the Senior National Championship and currently holds the individual national record in the 1-km Time Trial event.
Beyond his personal achievements, Amarjeet has consistently advocated for better infrastructure and support for the younger generation of cyclists. “Despite cycling being an Olympic sport, very little has been done to promote it in our country. It is a high-endurance sport that tests athletes to their limits. The intense training, physiotherapy, and psychological preparation require strong institutional support,” he said.
Amarjeet has largely supported his sporting career through self-financing, while his father ensured he had access to the best equipment and training facilities. He has also been strongly advocating for the construction of a velodrome for cycling athletes, noting that the only such facility in the region is at Guru Nanak Dev University.
