New Delhi – India is currently experiencing its best-ever medal haul at the Para World Athletics Championships, driven by outstanding performances from athletes like Ekta Bhyan and Soman Rana. The nation is hosting the 12th edition of the World Para Athletics Championships from September 27 to October 5, 2025, marking the first time India has hosted this event. Over 1,000 athletes from more than 100 nations are participating in 186 medal events at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.
As of October 4, 2025, India's medal tally stands at 18, comprising six gold, seven silver, and five bronze medals. This surpasses the previous best of 17 medals achieved at the competition in Kobe, Japan.
Ekta Bhyan and Soman Rana made significant contributions on the penultimate day of the championships. Ekta Bhyan secured a silver medal in the women's club throw F51 event with a season-best throw of 19.80m. Despite delivering consistent throws, she was bested by Ukraine's Zoia Ovsii, who won gold with a 24.03m throw. Ekta had previously won gold at the 2024 World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe and holds a personal best of 21.66m.
Soman Rana clinched a silver medal in the men's shot put F57, marking his first-ever World Para Athletics Championships medal. He threw 14.69m, finishing behind Yasin Khosravi of Iran, who set a world record of 16.60m.
Praveen Kumar, the Paris 2024 Paralympics champion, added to India's medal count with a bronze in the men's high jump T64. He cleared a season-best of 2.00m. Uzbekistan's Temurbek Giyazov won gold with 2.03m.
Several other Indian athletes have also made notable contributions to the medal tally. Shailesh Kumar won India's first gold medal at the championships in the men's high jump T63 class, setting an Asian record. Deepthi Jeevanji secured a silver medal in the women's 400m T20 class. Rinku Hooda and Sundar Singh Gurjar won gold and silver, respectively, in the men's javelin throw F46 class. Simran Sharma claimed India's first-ever gold in the Women's 100m T12 final, clocking a personal best of 11.95 seconds. Nishad Kumar secured a gold medal in the Men's High Jump T47 event, setting a new Asian Record. Preethi Pal won a bronze medal in the Women's 200m T35 category, and Pardeep Kumar secured a bronze in the Men's Discus Throw F64. Sumit Antil, a two-time Paralympic javelin throw champion, won his third world championship gold medal.
India's performance at the World Para Athletics Championships has been steadily improving, rising from two silvers at Doha 2015 to 17 medals at Kobe 2024. The country's success reflects its growing strength in para-athletics and the effectiveness of initiatives aimed at supporting para-athletes. Hosting the championships in New Delhi marks a significant milestone for India and is expected to raise awareness about para-sports.
