Get Instant News Updates
Enable
x
Notification Settings X
Time Settings
Done
Clear Notification X
Do you want to clear all the notifications from your inbox?
Settings X
For Quick Alerts
Subscribe Now  
For Quick Alerts
ALLOW NOTIFICATIONS  
For Daily Alerts

World Athletics Championships 2022: Neeraj Chopra's silver medal in javelin throw glitters as good as gold

For the records, Neeraj is just the second Indian and first male track and field athlete to win a medal at the World Athletics Championships after ace long jumper (who had clinched a bronze at the 2003 edition in Paris.

Neeraj Chopra

Bengaluru, July 23: Though Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra had to play second fiddle in the men's javelin throw final at the World Athletics Championships 2022 Oregon, his silver medal glitters as good as a gold.

For the records, Neeraj is just the second Indian and first male track and field athlete to win a medal at the World Athletics Championships after ace long jumper Anju Bobby George, who had clinched a bronze at the 2003 edition in Paris.

For now, Neeraj literally owns every major medal at stake -- Olympics, Athletics World Championships, Asian Games and Commonwealth Games.

At the Hayward Field in Eugene on Saturday (July 23) evening, Neeraj began with a foul throw and had 82.39M and 86.37M to be at fourth after three rounds.

World Athletics Championships 2022: Neeraj Chopra wins silver in javelin throw, scripts historyWorld Athletics Championships 2022: Neeraj Chopra wins silver in javelin throw, scripts history

The 24-year-old then got his rhythm back with a big fourth round throw of 88.13M, his fourth career-best effort, to jump to second place, which he held on to till the end. His fifth and sixth throws were fouls.

The javelin event is known for surprises and all it takes is one big throw which is precisely what Anderson Peters did.. but the only difference is that, he did it three times.

Decisive throw

Decisive throw

Grenada's Peters defended his gold medal in the event, while Jakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic clinched the bronze.

That fourth throw was decisive as it helped Neeraj surpass the Czech thrower in the next round. But there was no catching Peters.

Man in form

Man in form

He did so with one of the greatest ever javelin series, producing three throws beyond the 90M line to hold off the challenge from Neeraj and Olympic silver medalist Vadlejch.

Coming into the final, Neeraj was the man in form. The Army-man had broken his own national record with an effort of 89.94M while clinching a silver at the World Athletics (WA) sanctioned Diamond League meet at Stockholm in June.

Poster boy

Poster boy

At Oregon 2022, Neeraj had booked his spot in the finals with an attempt of 88.39M in his very first attempt in the qualifiers. All these years, a medal for India in athletics seemed to be a distant reality. In 11 months, Neeraj has changed that perception. First in Tokyo Olympics last year and now at the marquee event of WA at Oregon 2022.

"I've to congratulate Peters and Jakub," said the poster boy of Indian athletics, who felt relieved after having had a niggle in warm-up. "I didn't feel good during my first three throws. My warm-up wasn't good. I felt something in my groin during my throw but I think it's okay," added Neeraj.

Kudos champ!

Kudos champ!

At Tokyo, Neeraj had won Indian athletics' maiden gold and became just the second Indian to have won an individual gold in Olympics, after shooter Abhinav Bindra, who clinched the yellow metal at 2008 Beijing Games. And now at Oregon, he has become just the second medallist for India at the Athletics World Championships as his stocks keep growing.

"Throwing in this wind was also a learning experience. But we've the World Championships again next year, so I'll try to do better in Budapest," added Neeraj. Coming into the event Neeraj had set himself a target of throwing over 90M. Though he could not achieve that, his time will certainly come, with the next Athletics World Championships just a year away. But for the time being, we can sit back and raise a toast for Neeraj Chopra, who has raised the profile of Indian athletics at the global level. Kudos champ!

Story first published: Monday, July 25, 2022, 11:22 [IST]
Other articles published on Jul 25, 2022