Neeraj Chopra Olympic Record: What is the Indian javelin thrower's record at the quadrennial event?

India’s top javelin thrower, Neeraj Chopra, made his Summer Olympics debut in 2021 at Tokyo 2020. Chopra scripted history for India at the Olympics by becoming India’s first-ever track and field athlete to win a gold medal in athletics and also just the second Indian after Abhinav Bindra to win a gold in an individual event.

The date was August 7, 2021 which will go down as one of the iconic dates in Indian sporting history. Chopra was up against a tough field of athletes, including the then reigning world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada, London 2012 gold medalist Keshorn Walcott from Trinidad and Tobago, Rio 2016 silver-medalist Kenyan thrower Julius Yego, and Johannes Vetter of Germany, for whom breaching 90m was a cakewalk.

However, the Indian javelin thrower didn’t hesitate and showed why past performances don’t matter at a big stage like the Olympics. Chopra ultimately secured a gold medal in the finals with a throw of 87.58m, which came in his second attempt.

Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch threw 86.67m to finish second, and Vitezslav Vesely, also from the same nation, threw 85.44m to take third place. Notably, Neeraj Chopra’s second-best throw of 87.03m would have also got him the top spot.

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Neeraj Chopra’s preparation for the Paris Olympics 2024

After a historic gold last time, Neeraj Chopra aims to make it a double treat with another first-place finish in the javelin throw at the Paris Olympics 2024.

His preparation for the same is in full swing as the 26-year-old is currently training in Germany with his coach, Klaus Bartonietz, and physio Ishaan Marwaha. He will then go to Gloria Sports Arena in Turkiye until July 28 for his final training before heading to Paris for the Summer Olympics 2024.

The build-up to his title defense includes a silver medal at the Doha Diamond League with a throw of 88.36m, followed by a gold at the National Federation Cup 2024 with an 82.27m throw. Chopra’s third and last event ahead of Paris 2024 was the Paavo Nurmi Games in Finland, where he secured another gold with a throw of 85.97m.