Neeraj Yadav, a decorated 42-year-old para-athlete and three-time Asian Para Games gold medallist, was found dead near the Maujpur metro station in northeast Delhi on Monday night. Authorities have launched an inquiry into the incident, which is currently being treated as a suspected case of suicide. Yadav, who hailed from Uttar Pradesh and operated the Anshneer Sports Academy in Sonipat, Haryana, is survived by his wife and their three-year-old daughter.
The circumstances surrounding his final hours emerged during a police inquiry involving a female acquaintance who discovered him near his vehicle. The woman, who stated she had been friends with the athlete since December 2025, informed investigators that she had travelled to Sonipat on October 27 to meet Yadav. During the meeting, she reportedly told him that she could no longer maintain contact with him. According to her statement to the police, Yadav later drove her to Maujpur in his SUV.
The woman further recounted that she returned to the area near Gate No. 1 of the Maujpur metro station around 9:00 pm to check on him. Upon her arrival, she found the athlete lying on the road beside his vehicle. She subsequently rushed him to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Police were notified of the death after his body was transported to the emergency department of GTB Hospital.
Jafrabad police station has initiated legal proceedings under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which governs police protocols for reporting and inquiring into cases of suicide or other unnatural deaths. An officer confirmed that no suicide note or video has been recovered during the investigation. While police continue their probe, a relative of the deceased expressed disbelief at the nature of the tragedy, noting that Yadav had historically overcome significant hardships and struggled to succeed in his sporting career, and requested that the role of the woman present with him be thoroughly examined.
Yadav's life was defined by his resilience in the face of physical challenges. Diagnosed with post-polio residual paralysis at age seven, he turned to sports, competing in wheelchair tennis from 2005 to 2012 before finding his niche in para-athletics. He gained prominence in 2015 at the Delhi State Athletics Meet, winning gold in shot put, javelin, and discus. His international breakthrough occurred at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta, where he secured gold in the men’s F55 javelin throw with an Asian-record distance of 29.84 metres. He later claimed two more gold medals at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Para Games.
Despite his achievements, the final phase of his career was marked by adversity. The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) provisionally suspended Yadav after an out-of-competition sample collected in Bengaluru in 2023 tested positive for the anabolic steroid stanozolol. Though he sought DNA testing of his sample during the disciplinary process, he was eventually issued a four-year ban.
Reflecting on the athlete's potential state of mind, India’s chief para-athletics coach, S. Satyanarayana, suggested that the emotional toll of his suspension may have been significant. He noted that the ban prevented Yadav from competing in the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Para Games, an event where successful performances often lead to substantial government cash awards. The coach stated that it is possible this development impacted him deeply, potentially contributing to the distress that preceded his death.
Comments