Utter Mismanagement At World University Games! After Shuttlers, Sprinter Misses Race

Last Updated:July 22, 2025, 08:06 IST

Indian sprinter Devyaniba Zala has missed her 400m race at the World University Games due to mismanagement, despite being initially included in the start list.

Devyaniba Zala's name went missing from the start list (Picture credit: Instagram @arjunajay400)

In what has come as yet another example of mismanagement by Indian officials at the ongoing World University Games, 400m sprinter Devyaniba Zala was unable to participate in the race after her name vanished from the start list upon her arrival at the venue, despite being initially included.

According to an Instagram post by Devyaniba, her entry went missing due to the late alteration made by the officials in submitting the confirmation list.

Devyaniba also shared images showing her name in the official entry list, a scribbled pen writing which strikes out another athlete’s name to include hers, as well as the communication from the Kalinga Institute of Technology, where it has been mentioned that the athlete has to spend a whopping Rs 2.5 lakhs to take part in the University Games.

“I have been preparing for this event for over a year and was in good shape to clock a PB and make it to the 400m final and do something special. But when the start list for Day 1 came out last evening, my name in the entry went missing from the 400m women’s list," Devyaniba wrote on her Instagram post.

“The official of the team tells me that the date and time for submission are over, and we are trying. But when it is a global competition, how can a world committee accept an entry which is scribbled and written with a pen?" Devyaniba questioned.

“It might be very casual for the officials, but not to me, being an athlete who has missed the entry this way at the global competition," Devyaniba added.

The 23-year-old from Saurashtra has a personal best of 53.17 seconds, which she clocked in April.

“A fee of 2.50lakh Rupees to represent my country, and I miss out on getting an entry at the final moment," Devyaniba captioned her post.

Notably, this is not the first instance of mismanagement at the World University Games. The Indian badminton team that won the mixed team bronze medal at the tournament in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany, has been hit by a controversy over selection after six of the 12 chosen shuttlers were barred from taking part because of an alleged administrative lapse.

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