New Delhi, October 1: A humid evening at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium turned historic as three world-class para-athletes - Luca Ekler, Jaydin Blackwell, and Oleksandr Yarovyi - set World Records at the IndianOil
New Delhi 2025 World Para Athletics Championships.
Their performances took the total number of world records in the meet to 18 in just five days.
Ekler's early birthday present
Hungary's Luca Ekler, who turns 27 later this month, gave herself the best possible early gift by smashing her own World Record in the women's Long Jump T38. She soared to 5.91m on her fifth attempt, surpassing her previous mark of 5.82m set in Paris 2022.
Ekler dominated the competition, twice improving her record - first with 5.86m in her second jump before extending it further. Already a two-time Paralympic Games champion, Ekler secured her sixth World Championships gold medal, her third in Long Jump. Colombia's Angie Nicoll Mejia Morales and Karen Tatiana Palomque Moreno had to settle for silver and bronze.
Blackwell unstoppable on the track
USA's Jaydin Blackwell, just 21, continued his dream run by storming to a World Record of 48.00 seconds in the men's 400m T38 final. Having earlier won the 100m T38 with a Championships Record, Blackwell cruised to victory ahead of Colombia's Jose Albeiro Ramirez Estrada and Greece's Alexandros Diamantis Skourtis.
The American repeated his double gold feat from the Kobe 2024 World Championships and the Paris 2024 Paralympics, underlining his dominance in the category.
Yarovyi powers Ukraine with a record throw
In the men's Shot Put F20, Oleksandr Yarovyi (Neutral Para Athlete) hurled the iron ball to 17.73m on his third attempt, breaking his own previous World Record of 17.61m. His effort also ensured a Ukrainian 1-2 finish, with teammate Maksym Koval taking silver. Malaysia's Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli finished third with a strong 17.26m effort.
The event was of exceptionally high quality, with three athletes crossing the 17m mark, but Yarovyi's power and consistency stood out on a memorable night.
Other Highlights
- Brazil's Jerusa Geber clocked 11.81s in the women's 100m T11, setting a Championships Record to beat China's Liu Yiming.
- Colombia's Jose Gregorio Lemos Rivas broke the Championships Record in men's Javelin Throw F38 with a massive 60.94m.
- Iran's Hajar Safarzadeh Ghahderijani heartbreakingly missed women's 400m T12 gold by 0.01 seconds, edged by Anna Kulinich-Sorokina (Neutral Para Athlete).
- Great Britain's Hannah Cockroft and Ambra Sabatini (Italy) added sprint titles to their illustrious collections.
Medal Table Impact
Brazil surged to the top of the medal table with 8 gold, 15 silver, and 7 bronze, thanks to Jerusa Geber's sprint heroics. China stayed second with 7 golds, while Poland and India followed. India currently has 4 gold, 4 silver, and 1 bronze.
With world records tumbling almost daily, New Delhi 2025 continues to showcase some of the most exhilarating performances in Para Athletics history.
