E-Paper
Neeraj Chopra emphatically qualifies for javelin throw final at World Athletics Championships
Neeraj Chopra, India's biggest medal prospect at the World Athletics Championships 2022 in Oregon, qualified for the men's javelin final with a throw of 88.39m on Friday.
Neeraj Chopra, India's biggest medal prospect at the World Athletics Championships 2022 in Oregon, qualified for the men's javelin final with a throw of 88.39m on Friday. Chopra progressed to the final attaining an automatic qualification as he breached the 83.50m mark with ease in his first attempt. Neeraj, 24, was up first and he made sure he wasn't required to dish out a second time, and all it took him were 12 seconds to come a step closer to a potential podium finish. Olympic silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch of Czech Republic too joined him in the list with his first-attempt throw of 85.23m.
This is Chopra's third best throw in an event this year. Last month, he broke his national record twice with the latest being a 89.94m long throw at the Stockholm Diamond League meet. Anticipation is building whether Chopra crosses 90m, and although it won't be required today, Chopra might as well be saving it for the final on Sunday morning.
It is not often that an Indian athlete starts a global competition as a serious contender. Long jumper Anju Bobby George's bronze in 2003 Paris is India's only medal in the competition, and Chopra looks to join that list 19 years later, hoping to better the colour of the medal. A win in Oregon will mean Chopra will become the first men's javelin thrower to follow Olympic success with a world title since Norway's Andreas Thorkildsen.
This is India's second qualification at the World's javelin event after Annu Rani had secured a place in the final yesterday. Rani began the qualification round in Group B on a bad note with a foul. But then she came up with a throw of 55.35 m later. She saved the best for the last, making a throw of 59.60 m to make it to the final.
"I'm very close to 90m, I reached 89.94m so I'm short by 6 centimeters, so my aim this year is to cross 90m," he had said during a press conference. "I don't focus on the distance that I can achieve while entering a competition. I try to enjoy the sport and give my 100 percent and I will enter the World Championships with the same mindset, the amount of training I've done, the energy I have, I need to put in all."
Chopra's remarkable consistency since return to competition following a long break after the Olympics also points to his technical prowess. In three tournaments, he has taken 15 attempts, of which 10 were legal throws. He has gone past 86m in seven of them. At Stockholm, Chopra opened with 89.94m with three of his further throws also 86 plus. Peters surpassed him with a 90.31m in his third attempt.
Months of felicitations after Tokyo meant Chopra could resume training only in December. He then spent considerable time improving his conditioning first. Weight training, middle-distance running and simulating throws with the medicine ball were all part of this build-up. Chopra now averages an impressive 3 to 3.20 secs over 30m.
