<ul><li><keyword id="19968766" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Neeraj-Chopra" source="keywords">Neeraj Chopra</keyword> has qualified for the finals with a throw of 89.34m.</li><li>The finals for <keyword id="20428510" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mens-javelin-throw" source="keywords">men's javelin throw</keyword> are scheduled for August 8.</li><li>Here are the top rivals that Neeraj Chopra will face in the <keyword id="20006192" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Paris-Olympics" source="keywords">Paris Olympics</keyword> 2024.</li></ul> Defending champion Neeraj Chopra began his Paris Olympics journey on Tuesday as he looks to defend his title in men's javelin throw. Chopra qualified for the men's javelin throw final of the Olympic Games with a season's best effort of 89.34m. Much like his performance in the Tokyo Olympics, the 26-year-old crossed the automatic qualifying mark of 84m in his opening throw. The reigning Olympic and world champion earlier had a season's best of 88.36m set at the Doha Diamond League in May where he finished second. He holds the national record of 89.94m, achieved at the Stockholm Diamond League in Sweden in June 2022. If he wins the <keyword id="20342188" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gold-medal" source="keywords">gold medal</keyword> on August 8, he will become the fifth man in Olympic history to defend his title and the first Indian to win two gold medals in an individual event. Among the top contenders challenging Neeraj Chopra for the gold medal will be <keyword id="21117268" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Jakub-Vadlejch" source="keywords">Jakub Vadlejch</keyword> of Czechia. Grenada's Anderson Peters, Pakistan's <keyword id="4717164" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arshad-Nadeem" source="Orion">Arshad Nadeem</keyword>, Julius Yego of Kenya, Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago and Finland's Oliver Helander add to the high stakes at the Olympics. Germany's Max Dehning holds the world-leading mark of 90.20m, achieved in February. He has not gone past the 82m mark since then but his personal best still makes him one of the top contenders. The qualification round will decide the line-up for Thursday's men's javelin throw final. Athletes achieving the qualifying mark of 84.00m will make the final. Here's a look at Neeraj Chopra's top rivals at the Paris Olympics 2024: <h3>Arshad Nadeem</h3><keyword id="14533770" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Neeraj-Chopra-vs-Arshad-Nadeem" source="Orion">Neeraj Chopra vs Arshad Nadeem</keyword> is one of the most anticipated India vs Pakistan rivalries in athletics. Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem won the silver medal at the World Championships last year and gold at the Commonwealth Games 2022 with a massive 90.18m distance. <h3>Julian Weber</h3>Julian Weber, the reigning European Games champion from Germany has a personal best of 89.54m. He is ranked third in the world and his season's best of 88.37m came in May. <h3>Oliver Helander</h3>Oliver Helander of Finland is ranked fourth in the world and has a season's best of 85.75m. Earlier this year, he went head-to-head with Neeraj Chopra at the Paavo Nurmi Games. Chopra had topped the event with a distance of 85.97m while Helander was third at 83.96m. <h3>Keshorn Walcott</h3>Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago will be gunning for his third Olympic medal in his fourth appearance. He won the gold medal at London 2012, bronze at Rio 2016 and missed out at the Tokyo 2020 Games. The 31-year-old goes into the Olympics with a season-best of 85.11m and could prove to be a dark horse. <h3>Keshorn Walcott</h3>Julius Yego of Kenya, the Rio 2016 silver medallist, could prove to be a dark horse as well. The former world champion, now 35, has a season's best distance of 81.74m. With inputs from agencies. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/webstories/unicommerce-esolutions-ipo-price-band-to-risk-factors-all-you-need-to-know/slidelist/112307438.cms">Unicommerce eSolutions IPO – Price band to risk factors, all you need to know</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/electric-two-wheeler-sales-cross-the-1-lakh-mark-after-four-months-ola-electric-leads-the-market/articleshow/112288793.cms">Electric two-wheeler sales cross the 1 lakh mark after four months, Ola Electric leads the market</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/global-smartphone-market-records-8-growth-in-q2-2024-samsung-takes-the-top-spot/articleshow/112223188.cms">Global smartphone market records 8% growth in Q2 2024, Samsung takes the top spot</a>

Neeraj Chopra qualifies for finals with a first throw of 89.34m – top rivals to look out for

India's two-time <keyword id="19986816" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Olympic" source="keywords">Olympic</keyword> medal-winning <keyword id="19934351" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="javelin-throw" source="keywords">javelin throw</keyword> star <keyword id="19968766" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Neeraj-Chopra" source="keywords">Neeraj Chopra</keyword> has qualified for this month's season finale of the prestigious <keyword id="21269820" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Diamond-League" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Diamond League" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Diamond League">Diamond League</keyword> after finishing fourth in the overall standings at the end of its 14 series meetings across the world. The season finale will be a two-day affair on September 14 and 15 in <keyword id="20168467" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Brussels" source="keywords">Brussels</keyword>. Chopra accumulated 14 points from his two second-place finishes in the one-day meets held in Doha and Lausanne. He skipped the last series meet in Zurich on Thursday. The 26-year-old is two points adrift of Czechia's Jakub Vadlech. Grenada's Anderson Peters and German star Julian Weber occupy the top two spots with 29 and 21 points respectively. Peters had pipped Weber in the Zurich meet. Chopra, who won gold in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and added a silver to his kitty in the Paris edition last month, has been struggling with his fitness this season. The Haryana-lad has talked about a groin injury troubling him since before the Olympic Games that has come in the way of his quest to hit the 90m mark. The Indian finished second in the Lausanne Diamond Leg, bested by Peters, who threw 90.61m. In Paris Olympics, Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem had taken the gold with a monster throw of 92.97m. "First goal, go to the doctor and make my groin 100 per cent fit and also I will be technically better and try to throw far again," he had said last month about his plans for this year and the coming one. Chopra had won the Lausanne leg in 2022 and 2023 and finished second behind Vadlejch in the winner-takes-all finale in Eugene, USA, last year. Each Diamond League season finale champion is awarded a prestigious "Diamond Trophy", USD 30,000 prize money and a wild card for the <keyword id="20013163" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="World-Athletics-Championships" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="World Athletics Championships" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="World Athletics Championships">World Athletics Championships</keyword>. The DL finale will mark the end of Chopra's season. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/india-beats-the-us-to-emerge-as-the-second-biggest-market-for-5g-smartphones/articleshow/113095322.cms">India beats the US to emerge as the second-biggest market for 5G smartphones</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/apple-iphone-16-to-launch-on-september-9-design-specs-and-everything-we-know-so-far/articleshow/113091114.cms">Apple iPhone 16 to launch on September 9 – design, specs and everything we know so far</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/webstories/shree-tirupati-balajee-agro-trading-ipo-price-band-to-risk-factors-all-you-need-to-know/slidelist/113082663.cms">Shree Tirupati Balajee Agro Trading IPO – Price band to risk factors, all you need to know</a>

Neeraj Chopra qualifies for Diamond League season finale in Brussels

<keyword id="19968766" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Neeraj-Chopra" source="keywords">Neeraj Chopra</keyword>'s broad shoulders will carry a weight of massive expectations when his fabled consistency is put through trial by fire, while the lesser-known names in India's 29-strong contingent will aim to emulate some of his success when the Olympic Games athletics competition gets underway here on Thursday. A nagging injury forced Chopra to compete in very few events in the build-up to the Games, but the star <keyword id="20765859" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="javelin-thrower" source="keywords">javelin thrower</keyword> is still among the favourites to finish on the podium, and perhaps clinch an unprecedented second successive <keyword id="20342188" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gold-medal" source="keywords">gold medal</keyword>. A top podium finish on August 8 for Chopra will make him only the fifth man in <keyword id="22559483" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Olympics-history" source="keywords">Olympics history</keyword> to defend his title and the first Indian to win two gold medals in an individual event in the multi-sporting spectacle. Eric Lemming (Sweden; 1908 and 1912), Jonni Myyra (Finland; 1920 and 1924), Jan Zelezny (Czech Republic; 1992, 1996 and 2000) and Andreas Thorkildsen (Norway; 2004 and 2008) are the only ones to have defended the <keyword id="22616790" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mens-javelin" source="keywords">men's javelin</keyword> gold medals in the Olympics. He has competed in just three events this year but the 26-year-old world champion is back in full flow in a season where none of his global competitors have done exceptionally well. After finishing second in the Doha Diamond League in May with a throw of 88.36m, which is his season's best, Chopra withdrew from Ostrava Golden Spike on May 28 as a precautionary measure after he felt "something" in his adductor (group of muscles located on inner thighs). Chopra, who has a personal best of 89.94m, made a strong comeback by winning gold at the Paavo Nurmi Games in Finland on June 18 with a throw of 85.97m. He later opted out of the <keyword id="22097380" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Paris-Diamond-League" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Paris Diamond League" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Paris Diamond League">Paris Diamond League</keyword> on July 7, insisting that the event was never a part of his competition calendar this year. His coach later dismissed concerns surrounding Chopra's fitness, telling PTI that his adductor has no issues now and his ward has been in high intensity phase of training. One of the most consistent javelin throwers in recent times, Chopra has sent his spear below 85m mark just twice out of his 15 competitions since winning gold in <keyword id="20262833" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tokyo-Olympics" source="keywords">Tokyo Olympics</keyword>. Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Czech thrower Jakub Vadlejch, who beat Chopra in the Doha Diamond League, Germany's Julian Weber and former world champion Anderson Peters will once again be the Indian superstar's main rivals. The other Indian in fray in men's javelin, Kishore Jena, who booked an automatic berth with his 87.54m throw in the Asian Games last year but has struggled to cross the 80m mark after that. The qualification round of men's javelin throw competition will be held on August 6. Athletics competition will begin with the men's and women's 20km race walk. Akshdeep Singh, Vikash Singh and Paramjeet Singh Bisht will compete in the men's event while Priyanka Goswami will feature in the women's event. Among others in the contingent, men's 3000m steeplechaser Avinash Sable and the men's 4x400m relay team have the potential to push for a place in the top five. Sable recently broke his own 3000m steeplechase national record at the Paris Diamond League, clocking 8 minutes and 9.91 seconds, bettering his earlier mark by one and a half seconds. But he still finished sixth at the prestigious meet, a fair indicator of how difficult it will be for the Indian to win a medal in the Olympics. Two of the best runners in the event, world record (7:52.11) holder Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia and reigning Olympic and world champion Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco were not there in the Paris Diamond League. The same is true for the men's 4x400m relay team, though the return of key member Rajesh Ramesh from an injury lay-off is good news. The likes of Jyothi Yarrajji (women's 100m hurdles), Parul Chaudhary (women's 3000m steeplechase), Annu Rani (women's javelin throw), the women's 4x400m relay team, Tajinderpal Singh Toor (shot put), triple jumpers Praveen Chithravel and Abulla Aboobacker can aim for at least final round qualifications. National record holder shot putter Abha Khatua was mysteriously dropped from the original athletics team of 30. There was no explanation from any Indian official whether her name has been dropped owing to injury, a doping violation or any other technical issue. Meanwhile, a repechage round will be introduced to all individual track events from 200m to 1500m, including the hurdles events. The new format will replace the earlier one, where some athletes advanced to the semifinals through fastest times in addition to the top placings in the first round heats. Instead, only the athletes in the top placings will get automatic qualification and all the remaining will get a second chance to qualify for the semi-finals by participating in repechage heats.

Chopra to rely on consistency to defend Olympic gold, as Indian athletes begin campaign

Zurich, Newly-crowned world champion <keyword id="1115774" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="neeraj-chopra" source="Orion">Neeraj Chopra</keyword> missed out on a top podium finish to settle for second position with a final round throw of 85.71 metres in the men's javelin event of the <keyword id="74857" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="diamond-league" source="Orion">Diamond League</keyword> Meeting here. The 25-year-old Chopra, also the reigning Olympic champion, produced three legal throws of 80.79m, 85.22m and 85.71m while the remaining three were fouls. He finished behind Jakub Vadlejch (85.86m) of Czech Republic, who had won a bronze in the World Championships. The champion thrower said after the event on Thursday that physically he was feeling "very good" but was a little tired after the World Championships in Budapest, where he won gold. "I feel very good now, because everyone is a little tired after the World Championships. We gave our 100 per cent there (in Budapest), but for this competition here my focus was to just stay healthy, and we have to focus now for Eugene (Diamond League finals on September 17) and then the (Hangzhou) Asian Games (from September 23). The Indian superstar, who was unbeaten this season before Thursday, qualified for the Diamond League finals in Eugene, USA, with 23 points from three meets. He had won the Diamond League trophy last year. Chopra has qualified for Diamond League finals at third spot behind Jakub Vadlejch (29 points) and Julian Weber (25 points). The Indian was third because he missed the Monaco leg of the Diamond League due to injury concerns, while Jakub and Weber participated. Chopra had won the Diamond League meetings in Doha (May 5) and Lausanne (June 30) -- his only two competitions before winning a historic gold in the World Championships in Budapest on Sunday with a throw of 88.17m. The Tokyo Olympics gold medallist indicated he didn't exert himself too much in Zurich order to be able to give his cent percent in the upcoming competitions. During the pre-event press conference here, Chopra had said that he was feeling a bit of pain on his shoulder and back after winning gold in the World Championships. He was not 100 per cent fit during the showpiece event due to a groin strain he had sustained while training in May-June. "For me, the focus was just to stay healthy and to give my 100 per cent in my next competitions. Sometimes we need to read our body. Today, I feel OK, I am 100 per cent OK, but I did not push too much. "Sometimes, our number one goal is to stay healthy. Today, I gave it my best but still with the focus to stay healthy. I usually do my winter training in Europe, because it is a lot easier to travel, that's why I spent some time in Loughborough (England) for some months before competing in Budapest this summer," added Chopra. Chopra began with a modest 80.79m throw here, which put him in the second spot but he fouled the next two throws to slip to fifth at the halfway stage when Germany's Julian Weber was leading. But Chopra pulled off 85.22m in his fourth attempt which saw him rise to second. By that time, Vadlejch had taken the lead. Chopra fouled his fifth throw again but achieved his best of the day -- 85.71m -- in his last throw. Chopra's next target would be to lift the Diamond League champion's trophy in Eugene on September 17. He had won the trophy last year. This Diamond League final will be a winner-takes-all affair with no points being carried forward from the Diamond League legs this season. There are four Diamond League individual legs before finals in each event, with the prize money different for each leg and the finals. Chopra got US USD 6,000 for his efforts in Zurich, while the winner earned US USD 12,000. The top six qualify for finals in field events. The winner in the finals at Eugene will be richer by USD 30,000, while the runner-up and third-place finishers will earn USD 12000 and USD 7000. In men's long jump, <keyword id="6915162" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="murali-sreeshankar" source="Orion">Murali Sreeshankar</keyword> finished fifth here with a first-round jump of 7.99m. He also qualified for the Diamond League finals in third place on the standings with 14 points. Sreeshankar, who had failed to qualify for the finals in the just-concluded World Championships in Budapest, led the field after the first round. But, he slowly slipped out of the top three as he could not improve upon his first round jump. He was third till the end of the third round but slipped to fifth in the fourth and remained there till the end. Olympic and world champion Miltiadis Tentoglou of Greece won gold with a sixth and final round jump of 8.20m.

World champion Neeraj Chopra finishes second in Zurich; happy with effort

Mohali (Punjab) [India], August 28 (ANI): Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur heaped praise on India's javelin ace <keyword id="1115774" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Neeraj-Chopra" source="Orion">Neeraj Chopra</keyword> who clinched India's first <keyword id="28217" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gold-medal" source="Orion">gold medal</keyword> at the <keyword id="124430" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="world-athletics-championships" source="Orion">World Athletics Championships</keyword>. Neeraj recorded his best throw of 88.17 m in his second attempt in the Championship final and managed to keep his lead intact till the very end. Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan, the Commonwealth Games champion finished with silver with a throw of 87.82 m. Czech Republic's Jakub Vadlejch secured bronze with a best throw of 86.67 m. "Congratulations to Neeraj Chopra for winning gold at the World Athletics Championship 2023. The Golden Boy of athletics has done it again. Not only in the World Athletics Championship, Neeraj Chopra has won gold in several other Championships also. This is a big achievement for India in the field of Athletics. I am also pleased about the fact that not only Neeraj, but in the final six three Indian athletes made their place, Kishore Jenna and Manu DP performed well," Anurag Thakur said while speaking to ANI. The other two Indian athletes in the mix were <keyword id="4904763" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="kishore-jena" source="Orion">Kishore Jena</keyword> (best of 84.77 m), who finished fifth while DP Manu (best of 84.14 m) finished sixth. "The environment of sports in India has changed over the last few years. The Prime Minister also increased the sports budget by 3 times, he gave the go-ahead for the TOP scheme and also green lighted the Khelo India games. This has ethused the athletes and this has shown in their performance also" said the minister. With Chopra's success, India now has medals of all colours at the World Championships. This was Neeraj's second medal at the World Championships after he secured a silver last year. India's last medalist at the prestigious world event was Anju Bobby George back in the 2003 World Championships when she clinched bronze in the women's long jump. In the first round of attempts, Finland's <keyword id="14198716" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="oliver-helander" source="Orion">Oliver Helander</keyword> took the lead with a throw of 83.38 m. Neeraj Chopra's first throw was a foul, giving him a start that he did not want. The first throws of Kishore Jena and DP Manu were 75.70 m and 78.44 respectively. But it was not enough to give them a top-three spot. At the end of the first round of attempts, Helander led the field. In the second round of attempts, Czech Republic's Jakub Vadlejch took the lead with a throw of 84.18 m. However, Neeraj overcame the nerves of a bad start, outdoing Jakub with a monstrous 88.17 m throw to take the lead. Manu's second attempt was a foul. Jena's second throw was a solid 82.82 m and took him to the fifth spot. Neeraj led with a massive 88.17 m after the second round of attempts. The third round of attempts started and Neeraj recorded a throw of 86.32 m, the second-best in the competition so far. He managed to maintain his lead. However, with a massive throw of 87.82 m, Pakistan's Commonwealth Games champion Arshad Nadeem jumped to the number two spot. He recorded his season-best throw and less than a meter separated him from the Olympic champion Neeraj. With a third attempt of 83.72 m, Manu was still in fifth. Jena's third attempt was a foul and he remained at seventh spot. Neeraj led with 88.17 at the end of round three of attempts. Jena's fourth attempt was 80.19 m and kept him at the seventh spot at the start of fourth round of attempts. Manu's fourth attempt was a foul, keeping him at the fifth spot. Neeraj recorded the fourth throw of 84.64 m, still in the lead. However, Nadeem was still pretty close to him, throwing 87.15 m in the fourth attempt and having the second-best throw overall from earlier. Neeraj led the field at the end of the fourth round of attempts. Jena's fifth attempt was 84.77 m, taking him to fourth spot, one away from a bronze. Nadeem's fifth throw was a foul, delivering a blow to his hopes of a first spot. Neeraj's fifth throw was 87.73 m and kept him in the lead. However, it was just inches away from Nadeem's second-best throw of 87.82 m from earlier. Manu recorded 83.48 m and Jena recorded 84.77 in their fifth attempts. Jena was fifth while Manu at sixth. Neeraj still led the field. In the final round of attempts, Manu was still at sixth with an 84.14 m throw in the final attempt. Jena committed a foul and stayed at fifth. Nadeem's final throw was 81.86 m and failed to overcome Neeraj's 88.17 m in his final attempt. In this way, Nadeem settled for a silver and Neeraj made history with India's first-ever World Championships gold. (ANI)

Golden Boy of athletics has done it again: Sports Minister Anurag Thakur lauds Neeraj Chopra

Budapest, <keyword id="96627" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="olympic-champion" source="Orion">Olympic champion</keyword> <keyword id="1115774" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="neeraj-chopra" source="Orion">Neeraj Chopra</keyword> on Sunday scripted history yet again as he became the first Indian to win a <keyword id="28217" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gold-medal" source="Orion">gold medal</keyword> in the <keyword id="124430" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="world-athletics-championships" source="Orion">World Athletics Championships</keyword> with a best throw of 88.17m in the men's javelin final here. In another first, three Indians finished in top eight with Kishore Jena (84.77m) and DP Manu (84.14m) taking the fifth and sixth spots respectively. Never before did three Indians finish in top eight of an event in the World Championships. The 25-year-old Chopra dominated the competition and achieved his best throw of the day in his second attempt. He had a foul to start with, but then got 88.17m, 86.32m, 84.64m, 87.73m and 83.98m. Pakistan's reigning Commonwealth Games champion Arshad Nadeem took the silver with his season's best throw of 87.82m, while Jakub Vadlejch (86.67m) of Czech Republic got the bronze. Olympic champion Chopra began with a foul but jumped to top spot with his second throw, and from thereon, he led the field till the end. Nadeem also maintained his second position from the third round after which it was 1-2 for the Indo-Pak duo till the end. Chopra thus beat Nadeen once again as the Indian also won gold in the 2016 South Asian Games. Since then, the two have competed against each other in more than a dozen events and Chopra always returned triumphant. Chopra has now become only the second Indian -- after legendary shooter Abhinav Bindra -- to simultaneously hold the Olympics and World Championships title. Bindra won the World Championships title when he was 23, and the Olympics gold at 25. Chopra, who had become the first Indian Olympic track and field gold medallist in the Tokyo Games in 2021, had won a silver in the 2022 edition of the World Championships. Before him, legendary long jumper Anju Bobby George had won a bronze in the 2003 World Championships. The Indian superstar also became only the third javelin thrower in history to simultaneously hold the Olympics and World Championships titles after the iconic Jan Zelezny of Czech Republic and Andreas Thorkildsen of Norway. Zelezny clinched the Olympics gold in 1992, 1996 and 2000 while winning World Championships title in 1993, 1995 and 2001. Thorkildsen won gold in the 2008 Olympics and the 2009 World Championships. With his feat on Sunday, Chopra has won every title his sport has to offer. He has won gold in the Asian Games (2018) and Commonwealth Games (2018), besides four individual Diamond League Meeting titles (two each in 2022 and 2023) and Diamond League champion's trophy last year. He also became junior world champion in 2016 and won the Asian Championships title in 2017. Meanwhile, the Indian men's 4x400m relay team raised hopes of a historic medal after finishing second overall in the heats with Asian record time of 2 minute 59.51 seconds on Saturday. But, in the final on Sunday, the quartet of Muhammed Anas Yahiya, Amoj Jacob, Muhammed Ajmal Variyathodi and Rajesh Ramesh could do no better than finish a creditable fifth with a time of 2:59.92. Parul Chaudhary created a national record of 9 minute 15.31 seconds while finishing 11th in women's 3000m steeplechase final. The earlier record was held by Lalita Babar (9:19.76) who had finished eighth in the final of the 2015 World Championships. Chopra's gold on the last day of competitions brought cheers to the Indian camp after an underwhelming start. Except for the performances of Chopra, Jena, Manu, Parul Chaudhary, the men's 4x400m relay team and Jeswin Aldrin (11th in men's long jump final), the World Championships outing was mediocre for the remaining Indians. Long jumper Murali Sreeshankar and 3000m steeplechaser Avinash Sable were tipped to be the best performers after Chopra but both failed to qualify for the finals in their respective events, much to the disappointment of the Indian camp. In the 2022 edition, apart from the silver won by Chopra, five other Indians had made it to the finals. In the last edition of the showpiece, Chopra was beaten by Anderson Peters of Grenada for the gold. The Indian had settled for a landmark silver then with a best throw of 88.13m in the final to become only the second from the country and first male track and field athlete to win a medal in the World Championships. Peters, who had won gold in 2019 also, could not make it to Sunday's final after he failed to even touch the 80m mark in Friday's qualification round which Chopra topped with his single throw of 88.77m. It was a tense start as Chopra fouled his first throw but he roared back with 88.17m in his second effort to jump to the top. He had 86.32m in his third attempt. Chopra led the field at the end of the first three rounds when the bottom four out of the 12 competitors were eliminated. By then, Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem catapulted himself to second spot with a third round throw of 87.82m. DP Manu also moved up to fifth while Jena too made the top eight at seventh after three rounds. Germany's Julian Weber was third after the first three rounds but Vadlejch grabbed the bronze medal with his fifth round throw of 86.67m. There was no change in the top two as Nadeem could not better his third round throw of 87.82m, though he came close to it in the fourth round with 87.15m. He fouled his fifth attempt and by the time the Pakistani sent his spear to just 81.86m in his sixth and final attempt, the gold was assured for Chopra. The Indian took the final throw but could come up with only 83.98m which, however, was inconsequential.

Neeraj Chopra scripts history yet again, becomes first Indian to win gold in World Athletics Championships

For someone who was cajoled into taking up sport to shed weight, <keyword id="1115774" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="neeraj-chopra" source="Orion">Neeraj Chopra</keyword>'s rise to stardom from a Haryana village has been nothing short of spectacular, and at 25, he is on course to becoming one of India's greatest sporting icons. Two years ago, his spear soared high into the Tokyo sky as he became the country's first Olympics track and field gold medal winner. He was just 23, as he became only the second Indian to win an individual gold medal in the Olympics after legendary shooter Abhinav Bindra. A star was born overnight in a country that had for long craved for the ultimate success in sport's biggest platform. Before Bindra, who won the 10m air rifle gold in 2008 Beijing Olympics, India's eight other yellow metals at the Games had come from hockey, a team game. With his gold medal on Sunday in the World Championships, the legend of <keyword id="371" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="chopra" source="Orion">Chopra</keyword> continued to grow. He is now only the second Indian -- again after Bindra -- to simultaneously hold the Olympics and World Championships title. Bindra won the World Championships title when he was 23, and the Olympics gold at 25. With age on his side, Chopra is bound to achieve more success if he stays fit. He will have two Olympics and two World Championships before he turns 30. Superstardom after Tokyo gold The world junior championships triumph in 2016 heralded Chopra's rise on the world stage but it was the gold in Tokyo in 2021 that etched his name in Indian sporting history. The adulation showered on him was unprecedented; it was at par with if not more than some of the cricket icons. He was the toast of the nation and having attended so many felicitation programmes on one occasion exhaustion and fever forced him to leave a welcome function near his village. He later revealed that he had put on weight after missing training due to the many felicitation functions he had attended after the historic success in Tokyo. Chopra found himself among the most-searched Indian personalities online and ranked above the likes of <keyword id="6354486" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="virat-kohli" source="Orion">Virat Kohli</keyword> and Rohit Sharma in Google searches in India. After his Tokyo triumph, Chopra's brand value skyrocketed with top brand sponsors lining up for him. His brand value was compered with people like Kohli and his Instagram and Twitter followers swelled instantly. In December last year, Chopra dislodged the iconic world record holder sprinter <keyword id="28723" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="usain-bolt" source="Orion">Usain Bolt</keyword> as the 'most visible' and 'written-about' athlete in the world. Chopra led a star-studded field in terms of media coverage with 812 articles published in his name, followed by Jamaican sprint trio of Elaine Thompson-Herah (751), Shelley-Ann Fraser-Pryce (698) and Shericka Jackson (679). Athletics Federation of India president Adille Sumariwalla said recently that Chopra's Tokyo Olympics gold has made parents think that there is a career beyond cricket in India. Sumariwalla may not be off the mark as more than half a dozen Indians are currently capable of hurling the spear above 80m and three Indians, including Chopra, featured in the World Championships men's javelin final on Sunday. August 7, the day Chopra won gold in Tokyo, is now being celebrated as National Javelin Day. Consistency is the key for Chopra Consistency has been Chopra's forte since his Tokyo triumph as he has thrown above 86m in all the events he has taken part in the last two years. Of course, he has not competed in too many competitions -- just two this year before the World Championships -- but there has not been any drop in his performance. The least distance he has cleared since the Tokyo gold was the 86.69m while winning the Kuortane Games title in Finland in June last year. His best is the 89.94m which fetched him a second place at the Stockholm Diamond League, also in June last year. Compared to this, his closest competitors such as Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch of Czech Republic has thrown below 85m many times. Of course, Vadlejch has featured in more than 20 competitions in the last two years, more than twice as that of Chopra. It's almost the same in case of Julian Weber of Germany, who was fourth in Tokyo and also in the 2022 World Championships. Anderson Peters of Grenada suffered a dip in form after winning gold in the 2022 World Championships -- his second after 2019 edition triumph -- and he could not even touch 80m in the qualification round here on Friday to make an early exit. Ultimate down-to-earth and people's champion Chopra may not be as articulate as the likes of Bindra but his 'I can't hurt or disappoint anybody' mindset can floor anyone. He would readily oblige fans in India and abroad for selfies and autographs. He will not say no to scribes wanting to talk to him. No doubt, the Tokyo Olympics success brought certain restrictions as far as access to him is concerned with 'guards' surrounding him often, but he remains down to earth as before. He is still accessible in the playing arena. Chopra speaks from the heart and not in a nuanced way. He would even candidly tell scribes that medals are not awarded in certain events. Mischievous chubby kid cajoled to shed flab But many years before he achieved greatness, Chopra was under tremendous pressure from his joint family of 17 to lose weight. He was all of 13 at that point and had become a mischievous boy, often fiddling with the bee hives on village trees and trying to pull buffaloes by their tails. His father <keyword id="18562002" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="satish-kumar-chopra" source="Orion">Satish Kumar Chopra</keyword> wanted something to be done to discipline the boy. So, after a lot of cajoling, the child finally agreed to do some running to shed the flab. His uncle took him to Shivaji Stadium in Panipat -- around 15km from his village. Chopra wasn't interested in running and almost instantly fell in love with javelin throw when he saw a few seniors practising at the stadium. He decided to try his luck and, as they say, the rest is history, which would now probably make its way into school textbooks. 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The Humble Great: Neeraj Chopra's rise from a chubby village kid to Indian sporting pantheon

<keyword id="14198973" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tokyo-Olympics-champion-Neeraj-Chopra" source="Orion">Tokyo Olympics champion Neeraj Chopra</keyword> made an impressive return to competitive action as he broke his own national record to win the men's javelin throw silver medal at the 2022 <keyword id="14197332" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Paavo-Nurmi-Games" source="Orion">Paavo Nurmi Games</keyword>, here. The 24-year old Chopra on Tuesday registered a best throw of 89.30m, a new personal best and national record, to finish behind Finland's Oliver Helander, who won gold with a personal best throw of 89.83m. Reigning world champion and 2022 season's world leader Anderson Peters of Grenada claimed the bronze with 86.60m. The meet in Finland was <keyword id="3530" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="neeraj" source="Orion">Neeraj</keyword>'s first competition since winning the historic gold medal at Tokyo 2020 in August last year. "Very nice competition, and I am very happy for my personal best and national record. Oliver (Helander) had very good technique today. I tried maybe too much, because that was my first competition of this season. I will compete next in Kuortane after four days," Chopra said. The 24-year-old Indian made a statement of intent with his opening throw, measuring an impressive 86.92m. He then recorded 89.30m in his second attempt, bettering his own previous personal best and national record of 88.07m, set at the <keyword id="10876698" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-Grand-Prix-3" source="Orion">Indian Grand Prix 3</keyword> in March last year. However, the Indian failed to log a legitimate attempt in his next three throws before registering 85.85 with his final attempt. His second throw, however, was enough for a silver medal finish, an olympics.com report said. London 2012 Olympic gold medallist Keshorn Walcott from Trinidad and Tobago finished fourth in the 10-man field with 84.02m, while Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic came in sixth with 83.91m. After Turku, Neeraj is scheduled to stay in Finland to compete at the Kuortane Games before heading to Sweden for the Stockholm leg of the Diamond League. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.in/education/news/west-bengal-and-andhra-pradesh-have-the-most-proficient-techies-in-india/articleshow/92217804.cms">West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh have the most proficient techies in India</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/enterprise/news/tcs-infosys-and-hcl-tech-can-do-better-in-a-shallow-recession-than-a-slowdown/articleshow/92214156.cms">TCS, Infosys and HCL Tech can do better in a shallow recession than a slowdown</a>

Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra breaks his own national record at Paavo Nurmi Games in Finland

<ul><li><keyword id="1115774" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Neeraj-Chopra">Neeraj Chopra</keyword> wins the first gold medal for India in the Tokyo Olympics.</li><li>With this medal, India has won the most number of medals in Olympics</li><li>The 23-year-old registered a best attempt of 87.58m to finish ahead of Czech Republic duo of Jakub Vadlejch and Vitezslav Vesely.</li></ul>Subedar Neeraj Chopra created history for India by winning the gold medal in men’s javelin throw, with a throw of 87.58 metres. Chopra was seen as a medal contender for India at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 and his performance in the qualification round had raised the expectations of his fans. He had qualified for the javelin throw final with a throw of 86.65m. Chopra is the second Indian after shooter Abhinav Bindra to win a gold medal in an individual event for independent India. Chopra, who hails from Haryana, is a Junior Commissioned Officer (<keyword id="16961" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="JCO">JCO</keyword>) in the <keyword id="6354416" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-Army">Indian Army</keyword>. The 23-year-old farmer's son from Khandra village near Panipat in Haryana produced a second round throw of 87.58 metres in the finals to stun the athletics world and end India's 100-year wait for a track and field medal in the Olympics. Bindra, who had won gold in 2008 Beijing Olympics, congratulated Chopra on Twitter for fulfilling the nation’s dream. <div type="twitter" handle="Abhinav_Bindra" handlename="Abhinav A. Bindra OLY" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1240682571924529152/la1-tYMF_normal.jpg" favoritecount="39933" retweetcount="6420" status="And Gold it is for @Neeraj_chopra1 .Take a bow, young man ! You have fulfilled a nation's dream. Thank you!Also, w… https://t.co/098D5sjAxK" createdat="1628338164000" id="1423979585834680329"></div> Chopra’s gold medal has made India surpass the tally of six medals won at the 2012 London Olympics. It is the most number of medals won by India in a single edition of the Olympics. Czech Republic's Jakub Vadlejch bagged the silver medal with a throw of 86.67m. His compatriot Vitezslav Vesley took the bronze medal with a throw of 85.44m. Chopra came into the final as a medal contender after topping the qualification round on Wednesday with a stunning first round throw of 86.59m. But few would have thought he would bludgeon his way to gold in such a dominant fashion at the grandest stage. Season leader and pre-tournament gold favourite Johannes Vetter of Germany, who had thrown the javelin to 90m plus distances seven times between April and June, was eliminated after the first three throws as he was placed ninth with a best effort of 82.52m. Top eight after the first three throws get three more attempts while the remaining four in the 12-man final are eliminated. With his fifth career best throw, Chopra has done something which the likes of late Milkha Singh and P T Usha could not do in the 1960 and 1984 editions. No Indian has won a medal in athletics since the country started taking part in the Games in 1920 in Antwerp, Belgium. Three track and field athletes were part of the five-member team -- the other two being wrestlers -- in that Games. <div type="twitter" handle="BiIndia" handlename="Business Insider India🇮🇳" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1232926719016718336/sfffJHNV_normal.jpg" favoritecount="58" retweetcount="13" status="Etched in history!#NeerajChopra | The throw that won India a #goldmedal at #TokyoOlympics.#Tokyo2020… https://t.co/dmBOWeixUi" createdat="1628340157000" id="1423987946630246405"></div> (With inputs from PTI) SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/byjus-last-two-acquisitions-and-a-deal-with-disney-reveal-its-american-dream/articleshow/84783749.cms">Byju's last two acquisitions and a deal with Disney reveal its American dream ⁠— one that is anchored in India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/personal-finance/news/six-red-flags-for-investors-to-avoid-becoming-a-victim-of-misselling-by-agents-or-financial-advisors/slidelist/84782913.cms">Six red flags for investors to avoid becoming a victim of misselling by agents or financial advisors</a>

Neeraj Chopra wins India’s first track and field gold at an Olympics

Olympic champion <keyword id="1115774" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="neeraj-chopra" source="Orion">Neeraj Chopra</keyword> clinched his first top-3 finish at the prestigious Diamond League Meeting with a national record-shattering effort but missed the 90m mark by a whisker in a star-studded field here on Thursday. The 24-year-old Chopra opened with a stunning throw of 89.94m, just 6cm shy of the 90m mark, the gold standard in the world of <keyword id="1180773" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="javelin-throw" source="Orion">javelin throw</keyword> and that effort eventually turned out to be his best. His other throws measured 84.37m, 87.46m, 84.77m, 86.67 and 86.84m. He bettered his earlier national record of 89.30m, which his spear had travelled while finishing second in the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku, Finland, on June 14. World champion and season leader Anderson Peters of Grenada won the competition with a best throw of 90.31m which he came up with in this third attempt. He has thrown 90m-plus twice this season -- 93.07m while winning the Doha leg of the Diamond League last month before 90.75m effort at Hengelo in the Netherlands. Julian Weber of Germany was third with a fifth round throw of 89.08m while Tokyo Olympic silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch (88.59m) of Czech Republic was fourth. Another Czech athlete and Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Vitezslav Vesely was seventh in the eight-man field with 82.57m. Chopra has beaten Peters twice this month -- in Turku where the athlete from Grenada was third and in the Kuortane Games, also in Finalnd, where the Indian superstar had won gold with a best throw of 86.69m under wet and slippery conditions. Chopra's first throw had raised hopes of him scripting history of becoming the first Indian to win a Diamond League event. Nonetheless, he became the second Indian to finish in top-three in a Diamond League competition after discus thrower Vikas Gowda. The 2014 Commonwealth Games gold medallist Gowda, who retired in 2017, had finished in top-three in a Diamond League event four times in his career. He had finished second in 2012 (New York) and 2014 (Doha) and third in Shanghai and Eugene in 2015. Chopra was making his first Diamond League appearance in four years after his fourth-place finish in Zurich in August 2018. He has taken part in seven Diamond League meets -- three in 2017 and four in 2018. The prestigious one-day meet at the Swedish capital is Chopra's biggest event ahead of the World Championships in Eugene, USA, from July 15-24. The next Diamond League Meeting where javelin throw is in the programme is in Monaco on August 10. It could not be confirmed whether Chopra will take part in it as it will happen just a few days after the Birmingham CWG (July 28 to August 8) where he will be defending his title. Germany's Johannes Vetter, who has the maximum number of 90-plus throws among the active throwers, continued to be on the sidelines. He is not fully fit and had also missed the German nationals. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/careers/news/four-days-work-week-full-and-final-settlement-within-2-days-of-exit-new-changes-at-workplaces-to-reflect-from-july-1/articleshow/92572689.cms">Four-days work week, full and final settlement within 2 days of exit — new changes at workplaces to reflect from July 1</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/gst-rates-raised-again-take-out-your-cheque-books-wait-thats-taxed-too/slidelist/92572621.cms">GST rates raised again, take out your cheque books. Wait, that’s taxed too</a>

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Neeraj Chopra qualifies for finals with a first throw of 89.34m – top rivals to look out for

Sourabh Jain