International Institute of Sports Management (IISM), a pioneering sports management venture was on Tuesday bestowed with the prestigious Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar at the hands of Anurag Thakur, Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports.

IISM was founded by Nilesh Kulkarni, who played three Tests and 10 ODIs for India 11 years ago, along with his wife Rasika and the institute offer professional courses for under-graduate and post-graduate students, and explore uncharted avenues of sports management education in the country.