Paralympian Sumit Antil accuses javelin coach Naval Singh of harassment and abuse

Two-time Paralympic gold medallist javelin thrower Sumit Antil has accused senior javelin coach Naval Singh of mental harassment and repeated verbal abuse. Indian Olympic champion, Neeraj Chopra has also backed the allegations against the Dronacharya award recipient.

Javelin coach Naval Singh accused of harassment and abuse by Paralympic champion Sumit Antil

Paralympic champion Sumit Antil has filed a written complaint with the Sports Authority of India (SAI) against javelin coach Naval Singh for multiple counts of verbal abuse and mental harassment.

In his complaint filed on April 10, 2026, the 27-year-old gold medallist has reportedly written, "He gets drunk and sends random recordings abusing us and dragging our families into it. He tends to behave this way when competitions approach".

The Paralympic athlete also told the media that he had trained under Naval in 2018-19, however, even after that, the verbal abuses remained constant. "He gets drunk and goes on to abuse the families of different athletes, including mine, Neeraj bhai, Navdeep, and others. He (Naval) would deliberately share recordings of his abusive rants with my manager", he told a media house.

Olympic gold medallist also extended his support to Sumit and wrote a mail saying, "I stand in full agreement with my fellow athletes and strongly demand strict action in this matter. I write this as an athlete who has had the honour of representing India at both national and international levels. Sport must uphold dignity, discipline, and respect. The statements made by coach Naval Singh are not just inappropriate; they are disgraceful".

SAI has acknowledged the receipt of the complaint by Sumit Antil. A source has said, "A complaint has been received from Sumit Antil, Paralympic Gold Medalist, alleging verbal abuse by Coach Mr Naval Singh. The complaint has also been supported by other athletes, including Neeraj Chopra. The coach in question is not an SAI employee and is training another leading athlete as part of the National Coaching Camp organised by AFI. The complaint has been received against the coach, and the matter is being duly taken up with the federation".

Paralympic gold medallist Navdeep Singh, Para Athletics World Championship medallist Sandeep Chaudhary and wrestler Vinesh Phogat have all backed Sumit's complaint with the former two endorsing the allegations.

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