Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore was born in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, to Colonel Lakshman Singh Rathore (Retd.) and Manju Raghav Bhondsi. He pursued his education at the National Defence Academy, Pune, and Infantry School, Mhow. Rathore holds a B.A. degree and has completed various military courses.

Military Career

Rathore graduated from the National Defence Academy's 77th Course and attended the Indian Military Academy. He was awarded the Sword of Honour for being the best all-round Gentleman Cadet and received the Sikh Regiment Gold Medal for being the best sportsman of his course.

Commissioned into the 9th Grenadiers (Mewar) Regiment on 15 December 1990, Rathore was promoted to lieutenant in 1992, captain in 1995, major in 2000, lieutenant-colonel in 2004, and colonel in 2009. He participated in the Kargil War and counter-terrorist operations in Jammu and Kashmir.

Sports Career

Rathore's sports career is marked by numerous achievements. At the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, he won a gold medal and set a new record. He defended his title at the Melbourne Commonwealth Games in 2006. Rathore won gold medals at World Shooting Championships in Sydney (2004) and Cairo (2006).

His most notable achievement came at the 2004 Athens Olympics, where he won a silver medal in Men's Double Trap event. This was India's first individual silver at the Olympics. Between 2002 and 2006, Rathore won 25 international medals for Double Trap shooting.

Political Career

Rathore joined Bharatiya Janata Party on 10 September 2013 after retiring from the Indian Army. He was elected as an MP from Jaipur Rural constituency in the 2014 Lok Sabha election. On 9 November 2014, he became Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting under Narendra Modi's government.

He was appointed Minister of Sports on 3 September 2017 and later became Minister of State (I/C) for Information & Broadcasting in May 2018. In the 2019 general election, he retained his seat by over 3.93 lakh votes.

In November 2023, Rathore contested from Jhotwara Assembly constituency for the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly election and defeated Abhishek Chaudhary of INC by 50,167 votes. Following his victory, he resigned from Lok Sabha and took oath as a cabinet minister on 30 December 2023.

Awards and Recognitions

Rathore has received several awards throughout his career:

• Padma Shri (2005)
• Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award (2004-2005)
• Arjuna Award (2003-2004)
• Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM)
• Sword of Honour (1990)
• Sikh Regiment Gold Medal (1990)
• "Blazer" award at National Defence Academy (1989)

He was also India's flag bearer during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.