Para athlete Chirag Tyagi murdered; fellow athlete arrested

Just days after he clinched a gold medal at the 2026 Indian Open Para Athletics International Championship in Bengaluru, 400m sprinter Chirag Tyagi was found dead in Ghaziabad on Saturday.

Tyagi, who had won the men's 400m T12 event with a timing of 50.12s, was reportedly shot dead.

The 25-year-old para athlete was found with a bullet injury at Sai Upvan in the Kotwali Police Station area.

As per a report in The Week, the accused is a fellow para athlete by the name of Yash Khatik.

"Prima facie, the case appears to be a murder," Dhawal Jaiswal, DCP Ghaziabad, was quoted by media.

"CCTV footage showed a suspect who was detained and questioned. He confessed to the murder. The accused has been identified as Yash Khatik," he added.

Khatik and Tyagi used to train together previously with both competing in separate categories for visually impaired athletes.

Tyagi had reportedly filed a complaint against Khatik surrounding his documents, which led to the latter's Asian Para Games qualification being nullified. Hence, he committed the murder in revenge.

Tyagi, who lived in the Sports Authority of India (SAI) hostel in Delhi, had left the premises at 9:30 am on Friday morning.

His body was found at Sai Upvan forest at 12:30 am on Saturday by a passerby, who heard his mobile phone ringing.

The matter was immediately brought to the attention of local police, who nabbed Khatik following a thorough examination of CCTV footage.