Will Stedman and Anna Grimaldi have wrapped up the kiwi campaign in New Delhi in style, winning silver and bronze respectively on the final day of competition at the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships!

After missing out on the medals in the 100m by one one-thousandth of a second, Anna Grimaldi has won a richly deserved medal, winning bronze in the women’s 200m T47 final. Grimaldi was up against one of the deepest fields of the championships, with the women’s 200m T47 requiring three rounds of competition to separate the athletes.

Grimaldi was beaten to the top spot by one of the best-performing athletes of the championships, Kiara Rodriguez of Ecuador. Rodriquez entered the championships as the 2024 Paralympic 100m T47 and Long Jump T47 champion.

The 22-year-old went one better in New Delhi, taking home a trio of golds in the 100m T47, Long Jump T47 and the 200m T47. It took Rodriquez running a new world record to claim the top spot in the 200m T47 over the eventual silver medallist, Maria.C A.Da Silva of Brazil.

Grimaldi’s medal-winning time of 24.82s was a season’s best performance, coming in her fifth race of the week. She held off Marie Ngoussou Ngouyi of France, the 16-year-old rising star, who bettered Grimaldi by a hair in the 100m T47 final earlier in the championship.

The medal was Grimaldi’s second race of the day, having easily qualified through to the final from the semi-finals earlier in the day.

While Grimaldi was adding more global medals to her collection, Will Stedman was doing the same in the men’s Long Jump T36 final - winning a sensational silver.

Stedman produced an incredibly consistent series, with marks of 5.80m, 5.79m, 5.81 and two performances of 5.83m. All of Stedman’s performances were over the former championship record of 4.75m.

The gold went to Evgnii Torsunov, competing as a neutral para-athlete. Torsunov earned gold with two world record leaps, equalling his own record of 6.05m in round one and then shattering that mark in round four with 6.14m.

It was a close battle between Stedman and bronze medal winner Oleksandr Lytvyneko of Ukraine, with just 2cm separating the pair at the end of the day. Lytvyneko’s performance of 5.81m in round five was a lifetime best for the thirty-five-year-old.

Mitch Joynt was the final Kiwi on the track in New Delhi, lining up in the 200m T64 final. Joynt couldn’t replicate his medal-winning performances from Kobe in 2024, or Paris in 2023, finishing in sixth in a competative final.

Earlier in the day, Joynt had bettered his own NZ and Oceania record in the 200m T64 heats, running 22.98s to qualify through to the evenings final.

New Zealand concludes the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships with seven medals, and 21st on the medal table. Gold medals going to Lisa Adams and a double to Danielle Aitchison. Will Stedman earned a Silver and Bronze. Holly Robinson and Anna Grimaldi each earned a bronze medal.

About the Championships:

The 2025 World Para Athletics Championships are being held in New Delhi, India, at the iconic Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the same venue that hosted the 2010 Commonwealth Games. The stadium has been transformed into a global stage for para-athletics, welcoming over 1,300 athletes from around the world across 10 days of competition. For many, this championship is a key stepping stone toward the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympic Games.

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