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At just 21, Dondapati Mrutyum Jayaram had already won medals at major international competitions and established himself as one of Odisha's most promising sprinters. His sudden death has left a grieving athletics community with memories, unanswered questions and a future that will never be.
Indian athletics has lost a promising young sprinter, but for those who knew Dondapati Mrutyum Jayaram personally, the loss is far more than the end of a sporting career. It is the loss of a friend, a teammate, a younger brother and a young man whose dreams were still taking shape.
Jayaram, 21, died in a road accident near Cuttack on Wednesday evening, October 21, 2026. Another athlete, Malay Barik, also lost his life in the same incident. The two were reportedly
travelling to Cuttack to celebrate Dussehra when their motorcycle crashed into a road median after they lost control. Both were taken to SCB Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared them brought dead.
For former Indian 100m national record holder Amiya Mallick, the news was almost impossible to believe. He had watched Jayaram grow as an athlete, shared the track with him and witnessed the potential that made the youngster stand out from his peers.
Speaking exclusively to myKhel, Amiya recalled the moment he learnt that the young sprinter was no more.
"When I first heard about the incident, I was completely shocked because Jayaram also belonged to Odisha. I was just about to go to sleep when the news reached me. I think it was around 11:15 PM when I received a notification on my phone saying that Jayaram was no more.
My wife and I then rushed to the hospital. Initially, I went to a hospital in Bhubaneswar, but he was not there. Later, I received a phone call informing me that the cops had taken the bodies to a hospital in Cuttack. Upon my arrival there I learnt that he had been declared dead.
We were completely shocked because it was hard to come to terms with the brutal reality that someone so young had passed away like this. We simply couldn't process. "
Those words capture the helplessness of losing someone so young and full of life. One moment, there are competitions to prepare for, medals to win and goals to chase. The next, the people who shared those dreams are left struggling to accept that the journey has come to an abrupt end.
For Amiya, Jayaram was never just another young athlete competing for medals. Their relationship had grown beyond the boundaries of athletics, making the loss deeply personal.
Originally from Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh, Jayaram lived in Bhawanipatna in Odisha's Kalahandi district. He trained at the Odisha Reliance Foundation Athletics High Performance Centre in Bhubaneswar under coaches Rohit Mane and Martin Owens.
His journey was proof that exceptional talent can emerge from places far away from the biggest sporting centres. Through hard work and consistent performances, he began making his presence felt on the national stage while earning opportunities to represent India internationally.
Jayaram first caught the attention of the athletics community at the 2023 Federation Cup in Ranchi. At around 17 or 18 years of age, he clocked 10.40 seconds to win bronze in the men's 100m. Amiya won the race, but the young sprinter's performance was impressive in its own right.
Jayaram finished ahead of several established competitors, including athletes who would later go on to set national records in Indian sprinting. It was an early indication that Odisha had a sprinter who could compete with the country's best.
Amiya still remembers seeing that potential in the youngster.
"Jayaram was very close to me because he came to Bhubaneswar in 2022-23, where he was preparing for his competitions. I first saw him competing in Ranchi in 2023. I think he was around 17 at the time, and I won gold in that same race. Even then, I could see that he had immense talent. I knew that if he continued performing the way he was, he would do great things for India in the future.
"I had several conversations with him, and he would also share the problems he was facing with me. We had competed together in relays, set several meet records and won medals together," the former national record holder reminisced.
Amiya adds further, "He had tremendous ability. He had won a medal at the World University Games and was also an Asian U20 medallist. He clocked 10.40 seconds at the 2023 Federation Cup, and he had remained consistent ever since.
If you imagine what he could have achieved once he reached his prime, you can understand the kind of athlete he could have become. He had the potential to break the 10-second barrier in the 100m. "
"India has lost an athlete with enormous potential. And for me, personally, I have lost a younger brother," he said with a heavy heart.
Jayaram's achievements showed that his early promise was not a one-time performance. He continued to develop and earned medals at international competitions, including the Asian U20 Championships and the World University Games in the men's 4x100m relay.
Relay racing demands more than individual speed. Every runner must trust his teammates, maintain rhythm and pass the baton at precisely the right moment. Jayaram had become part of a group that could compete on major stages, carrying India's hopes alongside three other sprinters.
His achievements were also a source of pride for Odisha, where athletics continues to produce athletes capable of making their mark nationally and internationally.
In June 2026, Jayaram was part of Odisha's men's 4x100m relay team that won the national title at the Inter-State. The team clocked 39.72 seconds, with Jayaram running the second leg and Amiya bringing the team home as the anchor.
For Amiya, that victory was another shared memory with a young athlete whose career was moving forward.
Jayaram's final competitions offered further evidence of his progress. At the sixth Indian Open U-23 Athletics Competition at Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur, held from October 16 to 18, he won silver in the men's 200m and bronze in the 100m.
Those medals should have been another step towards the next stage of his career. Instead, they have become part of the painful memory of what he achieved before his life ended.
At 21, he had years of competition ahead of him. There were personal bests to chase, national colours to wear again and new milestones that remained within reach. Nobody can say with certainty how far he would have gone, but his record gave people good reason to believe that his best performances were still to come.
Sport often remembers athletes through their records, medals and championship performances. Yet, the loss of a young athlete reminds us that there is a person behind every result.
There are early mornings, difficult training sessions, sacrifices made away from home and personal struggles that rarely appear in the final statistics. There are also friendships built on the track, conversations after competitions and people who offer support when the pressure becomes difficult to manage.
Amiya's account of his relationship with Jayaram offers a glimpse of that side of an athlete's life. He spoke about their conversations, the problems Jayaram shared with him and the competitions they experienced together.
Their bond was not built only on winning races. It was built through time spent together and the understanding that develops between athletes pursuing similar dreams.
That is why Amiya's description of Jayaram as a younger brother carries such weight. The loss is not simply about what Indian athletics might have gained from his talent. It is about a relationship that has ended far too soon.
The tragedy also brings renewed attention to the safety of young athletes outside their training environments. Their lives involve travel, competitions, recovery and time away from the track. Sporting institutions cannot control every personal decision, but reasonable safety measures, clear communication and responsible travel practices can help reduce avoidable risks.
The immediate response to such a tragedy is grief. Tributes are shared, achievements are remembered and the sporting community comes together to mourn. But once the initial shock passes, difficult questions remain.
The reported circumstances of the accident are known in broad terms, but that alone does not establish the complete sequence of events or whether the tragedy could have been prevented.
Were Jayaram and Malay travelling with anyone's knowledge? Did their coaches, academy officials or teammates know where they were going that evening? Was their travel planned in advance, or was it a personal decision?
These are questions that deserve clear, factual answers, not assumptions or accusations.
It would be unfair to blame a coach, an academy, a family member or any other individual without evidence. Equally, it would be wrong to avoid asking questions simply because the incident has caused immense grief.
If the investigation establishes that a safety failure, a breach of responsibility or a preventable circumstance contributed to the deaths, those findings must be addressed transparently. If no such failure occurred, the facts should establish that as well.
The purpose of seeking accountability should not be to find someone to blame at any cost. It should be to understand what happened, determine whether anyone had a duty that was neglected and identify whether similar tragedies can be prevented in the future.
Perhaps the most painful question is also the most difficult to answer: could Jayaram and Malay have been stopped from making that journey, and could their lives have been saved?
At present, there is not enough verified information to give a definite answer. We do not know whether anyone was aware of their travel plans, whether anyone had the authority or opportunity to intervene, or whether any particular precaution could have prevented the accident.
That uncertainty makes a proper investigation essential.
Accountability, if it is warranted, must be based on evidence. The role of the investigating authorities is to establish how the accident occurred. The role of the relevant sporting institutions, where their responsibilities apply, is to examine whether appropriate safety procedures and communication systems were in place.
Jayaram and Malay's death should not be reduced to a tragic headline that fades as the sporting calendar moves forward. His achievements deserve to be remembered, but the circumstances of his death deserve to be understood too.
For Amiya Mallick, the grief is captured in one deeply personal statement: "And for me, personally, I have lost a younger brother. "
For Indian athletics, Jayaram's absence leaves a gap in a promising generation of sprinters. For his family and friends, it leaves a space that no result, medal or tribute can fill.
The two young men cannot be brought back. But a transparent investigation, honest answers and meaningful lessons could help ensure that their deaths are not remembered only as a tragedy, but also as a reason to take the safety and lives of young athletes more seriously.
