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Three-time Para Asian Games champion Neeraj Yadav was found dead near his SUV near Maujpur metro station on Tuesday night. Delhi Police said prima facie it was a case of suicide by consuming poison. The 42-year-old para athlete didn’t qualify for the recent Para Asian Games in Nagoya as he was undergoing a doping-related ban.
The Delhi police said that Yadav was found unconscious near his black Scorpio by a friend on Tuesday night. The friend, who had known Yadav since December 2025. He had dropped her off in Maujpur after they had travelled from Somipat.
“On Tuesday, she went to Sonipat, to meet him and explain that she could not further be in touch with him. Thereafter, Neeraj Yadav dropped her at Maujpur, Delhi, in his Scorpio-N car. At around 09:00 PM, she became worried after he didn’t respond to calls. She then reached near Gate No.1 of Maujpur metro station, where she found Neeraj lying on the road beside his car. She subsequently took him to the hospital for medical assistance, where he was declared brought dead,” a senior Delhi police officer said.
Around midnight, cops at the Jafrabad police station got a call from Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, stating that a man had been brought dead.
“The deceased was recognised as Neeraj Yadav, who is married and is survived by his wife and their three-year-old daughter. Proceedings under Section 194 of the BNSS are being undertaken by PS Jafrabad,” said the police.
Police said that Yadav primarily lives in Sonipat, where he runs an online sports academy under the name Anshneer Sports Academy.
Paralympic champion Sumit Antil and javelin thrower Vipin Kassana were with Yadav’s family after the news broke.
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“I am at a loss for words now. I am completely shocked. I have no words to express my emotions,” Antil told The Indian Express.
Yadav had won the F55 men’s javelin throw title at the Jakarta Para Asian games in 2018 and won the gold in the javelin throw and discus throw ( F55 category) at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023.
Yadav, who hailed from Ghaziabad, suffered partial paralysis at the age of eight and was a wheelchair tennis player. In 2013, Yadav started competing in athletics events and would emerge as the champion in javelin throw, discus throw and shot put in the Delhi State Championship.
In 2023, Yadav was provisionally suspended by the National Anti Doping Agency. (NADA) after he tested positive for Stanozolol, an anabolic steroid banned by the World Anti Doping Agency.
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National Para Athletics chief coach S Satyanarayan said, “Paralympics Committee of India officials are helping his family at this tough hour. Neeraj Yadav’s doping suspension would have ended in early 2027. It’s a loss for the para athletics community in India.”
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