It's remarkable that this didn't happen 3 years ago. Or perhaps it did, and wasn't documented. The machines in India have been really improving in the past 12 months, there are several that look like they'd have a fair chance of holding their own in modern middle-heavyweight combat. The arenas don't appear to have improved at all.

Also, I dislike the tone that seems to be coming from this; the suggestion that it's all the EO's fault and that somehow the competitors were forced to build and compete in these arenas. The builders themselves know better than anyone how dangerous their robots can be. As it has been in Europe and over the Atlantic for years, if there is a safety issue, the roboteers rally and get it dealt with. It's the moral responsibility of the competitors. That generally seems to have been ignored and the blame put on the EO, which might be correct legally, but isn't the whole story. I'm not defending the EO, for the record.

Happily, I have seen one or two top Indian teams saying they now refuse to compete until a decent arena is built, which is a step.

All that being said, it is of course a tragedy that someone did get hurt, and so badly. I hope he makes a full recovery. I just hope it finally penetrates the apparent stubbornness of those involved and they now take substantial positive action towards improving safety.