New Delhi 2025: First for Kumar, fifth for Ferreira in day of surprises

Brazil’s Petrucio Ferreira started off the IndianOil New Delhi 2025 World Para Athletics Championships with a bang on Saturday as he won a thrilling men's 100m T47 final, claiming his fifth consecutive world title in the event.

In the first of nine days of action at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the fastest Paralympian on the planet made a strong push in the last 30m of the race to clinch the victory by two hundredths of a second, ahead of China’s runner-up Shi Kangjun. Aymane El Haddaoui of Morocco won the bronze.

"The fifth title was harder than the first,” said Ferreira, who won the Men’s 100m T47 at London 2017, Dubai 2019, Paris 2023 and Kobe 2024 as well as at the past three Paralympic Games.

"The competitiveness and the pressure I put on my body, defending my titles, is always increasing.”

After realising that he had done it again, he celebrated the narrow win with five fingers in the air.

"I've been undefeated in this event for 12 years. This isn't just physical, it's psychological as well. For that, I have to thank my family. I enjoy challenges,” he said.

China is already leading, while India has claimed three medals of each colour 🫡#ParaAthletics #NewDelhi2025 pic.twitter.com/2XosSJL0yd

— Para Athletics (@ParaAthletics) September 27, 2025

Shailesh Kumar won India’s first gold medal of the championships as he sealed the victory in the men’s high jump T63 with a championship record of 1.91. USA’s Paralympic champion and world record-holder Ezra Frech cleared 1.85m in his first attempt to take the silver medal ahead of another home jumper – India’s bronze medallist Varun Singh Bhati – who also jumped 1.85 but needed three tries for it.

"We came here nearly ten days ago and it feels good to win a (gold) medal in front of the home crowd,” said Kumar, from the village of Islamnagar, 200km east of New Delhi.

"The target was always big, but I am happy with my performance and hoping for much better in the next championships.”

Three world records were set in the first day of action at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi, India as the best Para athletes on the planet battled it out for the championships’ first 12 gold medals.

China’s DI Dongdong won the men’s long jump T11 final with a world record jump of 6.92, adding 7cm to his previous record set at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games to win the gold medal by a margin of 12cm to his teammate Chen Shichang in second place.

Thekra Alkaabi of the United Arab Emirates broke the 20-second barrier in the women’s 100m T71 final as she won in 19.89 seconds, knocking 19 hundredths of a second off the previous world record set by Lithuania’s Bella Morkus in July. 

Morkus had to settle for a silver medal in 21.53 seconds this time as Poland’s Miriam Dominikowska won bronze.

Alkaabi and the men’s 100m T71 champion – Artur Krzyzek of Poland – also made history as the first 100m T71 champions as the event made its debut in the Para athletics World Championships programme.

Artur Krzyzek is crowned the first king of the men’s 100m T71!

The world record holder takes gold at #NewDelhi2025 🥇

Don't miss the next action live from 17:00 local time on our YouTube #ParaAthletics pic.twitter.com/7Aplc8VIXB

— Para Athletics (@ParaAthletics) September 27, 2025

Turkiye’s Aysel Onder improved her own world record from Paris 2024 as she won the women’s 400m T20 gold medal in 54.51 seconds, beating runner-up Deepthi Jeevanji of India by 0.65 seconds. The home hope had a strong start and led the race coming into the last 100m. In the home straight, however, Paralympic champion Onder, 20, pushed past her to claim the victory as Ukraine’s Yuliia Shuliar won bronze.

Japan’s Karasawa Kenya upset Brazil’s Paralympic champion Julio Cesar Agripino and world champion Yeltsin Jacques in the men’s 5000m T11 final. The Brazilian world record-holder had led the race from the beginning to the 2800m-mark when Karasawa took over a lead that he kept until the finish line.
The 31-year-old Japanese won in 15:23.38 as Jacques had to settle for a silver, crossing the line more than six seconds behind. Ecuador’s Darwin Gustavo Castro Reyes took the bronze.

Colombia’s Mayerli Buitrago Ariza and Kubaro Khakimova of Uzbekistan produced another great upset on the opening night of the World Championships as they denied Tunisia’s Para sport icon Raoua Tlili the first place in the women’s shot put F41. The five-time shot put world champion, with four consecutive Paralympic titles to her name, holds the world record of 10.55 but had to settle for a bronze medal at 9.96 in Saturday’s final as Buitrago Ariza and Khakimova, with 10.21 and 10.17 respectively, grabbed the gold and silver.

"After so many years fighting hard to achieve this, and after not taking a medal in Paris, here is the result of all the dedication and hard work,” the 38-year-old Colombian winner said.

"That’s what I am, I’m a warrior woman. I’m the world champion in India.”

The Netherlands had a strong start to the competition with two gold medals in the first day, earning an early second place in the overall medal table after China. Noelle Roorda won the Women’s Javelin Throw F46 with a new personal best throw of 43.74 as Cheyenne Bouthoorn produced a personal best to take the Women’s Shot Put F36 world title with 9.62m.

Complete schedule, results, records and medallists from New Delhi can be found here.