Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra put flour in others’ mouths in the Budapest javelin qualifying on Friday.
Chopra threw 88.77 meters on his first attempt, while the qualifying mark was 83.00. The Indian raced already in the warm-up at a quiet speed to around 83 meters.
– It was a really good qualification. Even the warm-up throws felt good. Two of them were particularly good, the Olympic champion said.
Chopra competed in the first qualifying group, the level of which was not great. Out of 17 men, only four exceeded 80 meters.
– We have a lot of tough athletes. In the morning, it is difficult for many to throw far. Sunday will certainly see long throws.
Neeraj Chopra breezed right after the first throw of the qualifier. Pasi Liesimaa
Before qualifying, the Indian’s results were partly a mystery, as he has competed only twice this season. Chopra threw Doha in May and Lausanne in June in the Diamond League. The results were 88.67 and 87.66 meters.
The reason for the little competition is a groin injury that bothered him in the past.
– I didn’t want to take risks and compete a lot, because the World Championships are my main goal for the season. I’m fine now. There was no pain in qualifying.
Life changed
Chopra recovered from the injury. Pasi Liesimaa
Chopra won Olympic gold in Tokyo with a score of 87.58. India’s prodigy is his country’s first Olympic champion in athletics.
Life changed in one fell swoop.
The star received around 927,000 euros in prize money from his home country, and the number of followers on Instagram rose to the current 6.2 million.
– Javelin throwing is quite popular in India these days. However, cricket is still the most popular, says Chopra.
The Indians have literally stormed to the top of the javelin throw. In addition to Chopra, they also throw at the World Championships DP Manu and Kishore Jenawho both crossed 80 meters in the qualifying.
Chopra’s success can also be seen in the man’s home village, Handra.
– There, 20–30 children have started athletics or javelin throwing. Anyway, I have heard from Indian parents that their children are enthusiastic about javelin throwing.
Chopra prepared for the World Championships in Budapest in Switzerland. Over the years, Finland and Kuortane have also become familiar.
– It’s good to be in Finland because javelin throwing is so popular there.