Table of Contents:
1. Laureus Sports Awards 2023 Winners - Lionel Messi and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce 
2. First Indian Airline to Operate Domestic Flight with Sustainable Fuel - Vistara  
3. Indian weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga wins silver in Asian Championships 2023 
4. New Lithium Reserves found in Rajasthan 

 

Laureus Sports Awards 2023 Winners - Lionel Messi and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce 

Lionel Messi, who led Argentina to victory in the 2022 World Cup as their captain, was honored with the Laureus Sportsman of the Year award at a ceremony held in Paris. In addition to that, Messi accepted the World Team of the Year award on behalf of the Argentina men’s football team, who won the championship in Qatar. Messi also became the first athlete to scoop both the World Sportsman of the Year Award and the World Team of the Year Award in the same year. 

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce OD, OJ (née Fraser; born December 27, 1986) is a Jamaican track and field sprinter competing in the 60 meters, 100 m and 200 m. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest sprinters of all time. 

Full List of Laureus World Sports Award 

• World Sportsman of the Year Award: Lionel Messi 

• World Sportswoman of the Year Award: Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce 

• World Team of the Year Award: Argentina Men’s Football Team 

• World Breakthrough of the Year Award: Carlos Alcaraz 

• World Comeback of the Year Award: Christian Eriksen 

• World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award: Catherine Debrunner 

• World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award: Eileen Gu 

First Indian Airline to Operate Domestic Flight with Sustainable Fuel - Vistara  

Vistara has become the first Indian airline to operate a commercial domestic flight on a wide-body aircraft using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).  

This feat was achieved on Vistara's brand new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, flying from Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), Delhi to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai using a blend of 17% SAF with 83% conventional jet fuel. 

On this flight, Vistara was able to reduce approximately 10,000 pounds of CO2 emissions. The airline has recently been featured amongst World’s Top 20 Airlines while being recognised as the ‘Best Airline in India and Southern Asia’ for the second time in a row, ‘Best Airline Staff Service in India and Southern Asia’ for the fourth consecutive year, ‘Best Cabin Crew in India and Southern Asia’ for the second time. 

Indian weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga wins silver in Asian Championships 2023 

Asian Weightlifting Championship is an event focused on weightlifting and is organised by the Asian Weightlifting Federation. In the Championship, India’s weight lifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga won a silver in snatch at Jinju, Korea. The 20-year-old won a silver medal in the snatch event with a lift of 141kg in the 67 kg weight class. 

Competing in his first tournament since winning the gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, Jeremy was the only one in the 12-lifter field who did not finish his event.  

China's He Yueji finished with the gold. Men have been participating in the Asian Weightlifting Championships since 1969, while women have been participating since 1988. 

New Lithium Reserves found in Rajasthan 

After Jammu and Kashmir, lithium reserves have been traced in Rajasthan's Degana. The new lithium reserve is much bigger than the one found in Jammu and Kashmir. Lithium reserves in Rajasthan have been found in the same Renvat hill of Degana and its surrounding area, from where Tungsten mineral was once supplied to the country. 

GSI and mining officials have claimed that the amount of Lithium present in these reserves can satisfy 80 percent of India's total demand. The discovery of these reserves may help in reducing the dependency of India on China for Lithium. 

Lithium is a non-ferrous metal, which is used to make mobile, laptop, electric vehicle and other chargeable batteries. Due to the global demand, it is also called White Gold. The global value of one ton of Lithium is around Rs 57.36 lakh.