Top para athlete Neeraj Yadav dies by suicide

New Delhi: Asian Para Games gold medallist Neeraj Yadav has allegedly died by suicide after consuming poison at his residence, with the accomplished para-athlete reportedly under emotional stress after a doping suspension ruled him out of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Para Games earlier this month.

His body was taken to a Delhi hospital for a postmortem examination on Wednesday, October 28. The circumstances surrounding his death are yet to be established.

S Satyanarayana, head coach of the Indian para-athletics team, confirmed the incident and said he had remained in touch with Yadav since the doping case came to light after the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Para Games.

“Neeraj has died by suicide. It is very unfortunate that such a thing has happened. I had a very close relationship with him. After his name came up in the doping case, I was constantly in touch with him,” Satyanarayana told PTI.

Yadav, who competed in the F55 category, was serving a four-year suspension after testing positive for a banned substance. The ban also cost him the two gold medals (javelin and discus throw) he had won at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Para Games, along with the associated government cash reward and a prospective government job.

“He came under a lot of stress after the doping issue. He was serving a four-year suspension. A couple of months ago, he spoke to me and asked if he could participate in the selection trials for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Para Games.

“I told him it was not possible as he still had a few months of his suspension left,” Satyanarayana said.

The coach said the doping case had dealt a severe blow to Yadav’s career and financial prospects, particularly after his success at the Hangzhou Games.

“When he won two gold medals at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games, he was in line for a Class I government job in Uttar Pradesh, which would have improved his life. He was supposed to get more than Rs 3 crore and a Class I job. His peers had all got jobs,” he said.

Satyanarayana said Yadav had lost out on the cash award after the Asian Paralympic Committee stripped him of his Hangzhou gold medals following the doping proceedings.

The suspension process, he said, began with the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), before the report was referred to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the Asian Paralympic Committee took action. He added that the delay in the proceedings was linked to the appeal process.

While expressing shock over Yadav’s death, Satyanarayana said he did not know the exact circumstances that led to the incident.

“I can’t speculate on the exact reason, but he was depressed on a number of counts. One was the shock of losing the two gold medals, the second was the cash award he would have received, and the third was his job prospects,” he said.

“He definitely took poison. But the exact substance he took will only be known after the postmortem examination. But 100 per cent, he took poison… the colour of the body had also changed somewhat.

“I don’t understand why he took this extreme step when there are so many avenues for para-athletes to earn a livelihood. He could have become a coach. Things have changed for para-athletes compared to 40 years ago. He had also received good prize money for the gold he won at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta,” he added.

Yadav had won three gold medals at the Asian Para Games during his career. He clinched the men’s javelin throw title at the 2018 edition in Jakarta before winning gold in both the javelin and discus events at Hangzhou in 2023. The latter two titles were subsequently stripped following the doping case.

Diagnosed with post-polio residual paralysis at the age of seven, Yadav initially took up wheelchair tennis before switching to para-athletics, where he established himself as an international-level competitor.

The F55 classification is used for seated field events in para-athletics, including the shot put, discus and javelin.

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