With revamped washrooms and upgraded new tracks in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the capital city is all set for the 12th World Para Athletics Championship from September 27 to October 5.

These upgrades at the iconic stadium include two new tracks, 20 washrooms made fully accessible for athletes, eight new lifts, an extended long jump pit, and a revamped throwing platform. Alongside, there are also two new Mondo tracks, including one in the main stadium and another in the warm-up area.

“The length of the Mondo track is definitely the best thing that has happened for us. Earlier, we used to go abroad, athletes faced difficulty with the grip on a Mondo track, but there won’t be any such issues now,” said Paralympics silver medallist Pranav Soorma. National media reports that he would earlier struggle to make his way to the throwing area at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. Not so long ago, his wheelchair would be passed through bumps and potholes on his way into the stadium.

“But now it has changed. I can propel my wheelchair smoothly and sometimes without anyone’s assistance,” said Soorma. He secured a silver medal in the club throw event at the Paris Paralympics.

India’s Performance in the Past

India bagged a good number of medals at the Paralympics before that, including four in 2016, 19 in 2021, and finally 29 last year. This year, India is hosting a Paralympics event of this scale for the first time. When the opportunity to host a big-ticket para event arose last year, the Paralympics Committee of India (PCI) “grabbed it with both hands,” according to World Para Athletics president Paul Fitzgerald.

“India has grown in the para sports community over the past decade and showed good performance at global events at WPA. We also wanted new reasons to explore, and that is the cross-section where we meet to host big-ticket events in India, including Grand Prix and World Championships,” said Fitzgerald.

“Half of the 40 washrooms have been made fully accessible for para athletes, with the rest semi-accessible. The new gym is equipped with all the equipment that para athletes use. We have installed eight new lifts that are accessible for para athletes. After this World Championship, the stadium will be ready to host any para tournament,” said PCI president Devendra Jhajharia.

The long jump has been extended on both sides to prevent injuries to visually impaired jumpers. “When they go for a jump, sometimes they lose direction and fall on the track, which is dangerous for them. We have increased the thickness of the track near the jumping pit to avoid that,” added Jhajharia.

In a similar fashion, the old throwing platform for wheelchair athletes has been replaced.

Participants from the World

A total of 2,200 participants will be arriving for the event, with the competition starting on Saturday and continuing till October 5. These will include athletes, coaches, and other officials from various countries, who will be staying in 14 hotels that will have wheelchair accessibility with ramps.

“Transport is a big challenge, but we have sorted it out by deploying buses across the city,” said Jhajharia. For the smooth sailing of the event, 60 buses will ply and will be accessible to para athletes, 20 of them specifically for wheelchair users. There is also a large technical crew that will assist.