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Neeraj Chopra Scripts History, Bring Laurels To India At World Athletics Championships

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Neeraj Chopra Scripts History, Bring Laurels To India At World Athletics Championships
24 Jul 2022
6 min read

News Synopsis

Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra made history once more as he won silver in the javelin throw final today, becoming just the second Indian and first male track and field athlete to do so. The 24-year-old athlete, has brought laurels to India by his win.

Chopra, who entered the championship as a strong medal favourite, recorded a best throw of 88.13 metres to place second. Anju Bobby George, a legendary long jumper, was the first Indian to win a medal at the World Championships in 2003 in Paris, taking home a bronze.

Chopra got things started with a foul throw and finished the first three rounds with 82.39 and 86.37 metres. He regained his rhythm with a strong throw in the fourth round—88.13 metres, his fourth career-best effort—which propelled him into second place, which he retained all the way to the finish.

His throws number five and six were fouls. Anderson Peters, the defending champion, of Grenada claimed the gold with a best throw of 90.54 metres, and Jakub Vadlejch, the Czech Republic's Olympic silver medalist, took the bronze with 88.09 metres.

He is the first Asian athlete to win an Olympic gold medal in men's javelin throw. A Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) in the Indian Army, Chopra is the first track and field athlete to win a gold medal for India at the Olympics.He is also the first track and field athlete from India to win at the IAAF World U20 Championships, where in 2016 he achieved a world under-20 record throw of 86.48 m, becoming the first Indian athlete to set a world record.