The more you interact with Neeraj Chopra, the more you wonder at the Olympic Games Javelin Throw gold medallist’s evolution as an athlete and remaining grounded. Such journeys, as the one he is on, can be so consuming that athletes can develop tunnel vision, but hearteningly, the pursuit of excellence has not made India’s most loved athlete shut himself off totally.
Neeraj Chopra, who won the Diamond League Trophy with a 88.44m effort in the Grand Final in Zurich last year, is looking forward to launching a packed season when he returns to Doha after more than five years to compete in the customary opening meet of the Diamond League season in the Suheim bin Hamad Stadium here on Friday.
And it promises to be an explosive competition.
Four of the 10 throwers have personal bests in excess of 90m with two-time World Champion Anderson Peters (Grenada) leading the charts, marking 93.07m in the competition here last year. Julius Yego (Kenya), Jakub Vadlejch (Czech Republic) and Kehsorn Walcott (Trinidad and Tobago) are the others ahead of the Indian in the all-times top list of athletes competing here.
Back in 2018 when he made his first appearance in the Doha Diamond League, he was fourth with a best effort of 87.43m. In the five years since, he has had an amazing journey, winning the Olympic Games gold in 2021, the World Championships silver in Eugene last year and inching close to becoming a member of the rather exclusive 90m club.
Given that Doha has seen quite a few throws in excess of 90m, we may see more on Friday. Of course, Neeraj Chopra has been asked about the 90m barrier on numerous occasions and I preferred to not rake it up on the eve of the competition here. Instead I chose to focus on the 25-year-old’s growth as an athlete.
Indeed, the Panipat lad has evolved in the time since he last competed here. “For sure, I have grown older,” he says, breaking into a wide smile. “And I have learnt a lot from competitions. I realised a few dreams including competing in the Olympic Games and performing well in the World Championships. My throwing has improved as well.
“My (elbow) injury in 2018 and the time spent in rehabilitation have taught me a few things. And the aim is to try and keep learning,” Neeraj Chopra says, indicating that his quest to get better as an athlete will continue, uninterrupted.
He missed three major events here in four years. In April 2019, he was recovering from an elbow injury and skipped the Asian Championships. Later that year, athletics officials prevailed on him to give the World Championships here a miss and not rush his return to competition. And, he did not compete in the Doha Diamond League last year since he did not feel he was ready.
“I am feeling good that I am back in Doha after 2018. I have trained well and the focus will be on bringing that (into play) and doing well. There are many big events this year like the World Championships, Diamond League and the Asian Games, leading to the Olympic Games in Paris next year. Yes, it is an important year,” he says.
His 2023 calendar is a bit more packed than the last couple of years. Besides the Diamond League competitions, he will showcase his best at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest (August 19 to 27), the Diamond League final in Eugene (September 16-17) and the Asian Games in Hangzhou (September 23 to October 8).
On a rather pleasant Wednesday evening on the sidelines of the warm-up track at the Suhaim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, with a strong breeze was making its presence felt, it was clear his focus is sharp as ever and he has a practical approach to looking ahead for what can be his first complete season since 2018.
“I was recovering from injury in 2019, competed in Potchefstroom in January 2020 (qualifying for the Tokyo Olympic Games) but that year and 2021 were both impacted by Covid pandemic. And in 2022, I joined competitions late because I wanted to be sure that I was fit and ready after my return to training was delayed (in the wake of the gold medal in Tokyo2020),” he says.
That he takes pride in the evolution of Indian athletics and delights in the growth of his team-mates is very evident. When I drew his attention to the 24 medals won by Indians in the Asian U18 Championships in Tashkent recently, he said he had followed the event. “It feels good. I have always said our athletics is growing,” he said.
Rather than stopping there, he continued to speak glowing about his contemporaries. “It is good that (Commonwealth Games Triple Jump champion) Eldhose Paul is here. More and more Indian athletes are making it to the Diamond League competition. M Sreeshankar and Jeswin Aldrin would be in Paris (Diamond League). Avinash Sable is also competing,” he says.
Despite his 360-degree awareness, his sharp focus has been a standout characteristic. And you can be sure he will continue to keep adding layers to his personality while growing as an athlete and chasing goals relentlessly.
