Athletics
Neeraj Chopra scripts yet another historic feat, becomes the first Indian to win Diamond League title
Neeraj Chopra had to pull out of the Commonwealth Games 2022 with an injury.
Indian Commonwealth Games 2022 began with a shocker as Olympic Gold medallist Neeraj Chopra pulled out of the mega event due to injury. The Indian javelin star sustained his CWG 2022-ending injury at the World Athletics Championship prior to the Birmingham Commonwealth.
In Chopra’s absence, India essentially lost out on a medal, keeping in mind the Javelin thrower’s outstanding form. Right before the injury, Chopra snatched silver with a throw of 88.13m at the World Athletics Championships. With the heartbreak at CWG 2022 still fresh, the Javelin star entered the Lausanne Diamond League event and won it. With a throw of 89.08m, Chopra became the first ever Indian to win a Diamond League event.
The victory has also propelled the 24-year-old to the Diamond League finals in Zurich next month. Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch finished second with a throw of 85.88m whereas Curtis Thompson from the USA came third with a throw of 83.72m.
Watch the video of Neeraj Chopra’s final throw at the Diamond League event below:
First @Diamond_League win?
Great night at @athletissima in Lausanne and happy to receive so much support from the stands. ??
Next stop ?? @WeltklasseZH pic.twitter.com/ZaT7TRUl8Y— Neeraj Chopra (@Neeraj_chopra1) August 27, 2022
After the win, an ecstatic Chopra said, “I am delighted with my result tonight. 89m is a great performance. I am especially pleased as I am coming back from an injury and tonight was a good indicator that I have recovered well.”
“I had to skip Commonwealth Games due to injury and I was a bit nervous. Tonight has given me a lot of confidence to finish the season on a high, with a strong performance in Zurich DL Final,” added the 24-year-old.
Neeraj Chopra has now qualified for the Diamond League finals in Zurich scheduled to be held on September 7th and 8th. Having earned eight points on Friday, the javelin thrower added important points to his 15 earlier. The top six after the Lausanne Diamond Meet have now qualified for the Zurich finals.
After breaching the 85.20m mark Chopra also has qualified for the 2023 World Championships in Budapest. He has finished second behind Grenada’s Anderson Peters in this year’s event before pulling out of the Commonwealth Games 2022.
