World Para Athletics Championships 2025: Questions Arise As Foreign Coaches Bitten By Stray Dogs Inside JLN Stadium

The World Para Athletics Championships 2025 was marred by a serious lapse in venue safety after two foreign coaches from Japan and Kenya were bitten by stray dogs at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi on Friday, October 3.

In incidents that have sparked widespread concern and criticism, coaches Meiko Okumatsu (Japan) and Dennis Maragia (Kenya) were attacked separately on the stadium’s warm-up track.

Both were immediately attended to by medical staff on-site and later taken to Safdarjung Hospital’s Anti-Rabies Clinic for further treatment. They are now in stable condition and back at their hotels.

“Despite these precautionary measures, the challenge of individuals repeatedly feeding stray dogs near the venue has allowed animals to re-enter the premises,” the Organising Committee said in an official statement.

 “The safety, health, and well-being of participants is non-negotiable,” it added, reaffirming that the stadium had been sanitized and stronger prevention measures were now in place.

According to a Kenyan team official, Joel Atuti, the incident occurred when Coach Dennis was speaking with an athlete near the call room. “A stray dog came out from nowhere and bit him,” he told PTI.

Prior Notice To MCD

These incidents come despite prior preventive actions. On August 21, the Organising Committee had requested the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to remove stray dogs from the premises.

The MCD had deployed dog-catching teams and vehicles, with continued presence at the venue from Day 1 of the Championships. However, people feeding dogs near the stadium allowed the animals to return, undermining the efforts.

In response, the MCD has increased its deployment, now stationing two permanent dog-catching teams inside the stadium, with immediate transport to animal shelters. Officials emphasized that the removal of dogs is being carried out in line with strict animal welfare norms.

NCR's Stray Dogs

These developments have reignited debate over India's stray dog crisis and the balance between public safety and animal rights. In a related case, the Supreme Court on September 27 stayed an earlier ruling that would have required all stray dogs in Delhi-NCR to be permanently kept in shelters. The Court underlined that public feeding of strays must stop, and called for dedicated feeding zones to be created instead.

Captured dogs must be sterilised, dewormed, vaccinated, and then released back to the same locality, except for those suffering from or suspected to have rabies or aggressive behaviour,” said the three-judge Bench led by Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N.V. Anjaria.

On social media, the backlash was swift.

“Dog lovers are the reason all this is happening. Send these dogs to the homes of these dog lovers,” wrote one user on X.

Another fumed, “Unbelievable. This is how serious we are in sports and managing facilities! @mansukhmandviya.”

While the Organising Committee insists the incidents are isolated, concerns remain about broader safety lapses in international sporting events hosted in India.