Neutral Paralympic Athlete (NPA) Denis Gnezdilov made history on the third day of the World Para Athletics Championships in New Delhi (September 29, 2025), smashing the men’s F40 shot put world record an incredible two times to claim the gold medal.
His command over the event at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium was undeniable. After an initial throw of 10.66m, each of his subsequent five attempts was strong enough to secure the top spot.
The 38-year-old Russian athlete was truly in a class of his own. His third throw, a remarkable 11.85m, surpassed the existing world record held by Portuguese Paralympic gold medallist Miguel Monteiro. Not content with that, Gnezdilov raised the bar even higher with his final throw, achieving an astonishing 11.92m in this event designed for athletes of short stature.
This victory marks Gnezdilov’s third World Championship title, further solidifying his undisputed dominance in the F40 shot put event, having also won gold at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics.
It’s important to note that Russian and Belarusian athletes are currently competing under the ‘Neutral Paralympic Athlete’ (NPA) designation, as they are not permitted to represent their national flags following the invasion of Ukraine.
In the same event, Miguel Monteiro secured the silver medal with a throw of 11.31m, while Iraq’s Garrah Tnaiash earned the bronze with an effort of 10.86m.
Monday morning also witnessed two other championship records being broken. Poland’s Bartosz Gorczak set a new meet record in the men’s shot put F53 final with an impressive 8.67m throw. In the women’s discus throw F44 final, Mexico’s Osiris Aneth Machado clinched gold with a championship record of 44.36m.
Poland continued its success by winning a second gold medal on the day, courtesy of Faustyna Kotlowska in the women’s discus throw F64 event.
These two gold medals propelled Poland to the top of the overall medal table with four gold and four bronze, ahead of Brazil (3 gold, 5 silver, 2 bronze) and China (3 gold, 4 silver, 3 bronze).
Dayawanti Achieves Asian Record but Finishes Fourth
Among the Indian contingent, Dayawanti delivered the most notable performance, securing fourth place in the women’s discus throw F64 final. Her final attempt of 27.94m not only earned her this position but also set a new Asian Record on Monday morning (September 29, 2025).
Despite her record-breaking throw, she was just 1.51m shy of securing a bronze medal, which went to Alicia Guerrero of the United States of America.
Ayush Verma finished fifth in the men’s shot put F5 final, with his best effort of 7.23m placing him 97cm short of the bronze medal won by Ales Kisy of Czechia.
Veteran campaigner Rongali Ravi, despite a season’s best effort of 10.10m, couldn’t quite reach the podium in the highly competitive men’s shot put F40 final, falling 76cm short of a medal finish.