The Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, was yet another happy outing for the Indian javelin ace Neeraj Chopra, as he won the gold medal in the event with a best throw of 88.88m. What made things even better was that, compatriot Kishore Jena ended the event with a silver medal too, with a mammoth throw of 87.54m.
But the 90m throw still eluded the Indian champion. In the past, Neeraj has made it clear time and again, that it is not something that he is concerned about. Upon returning to India, and interacting with the media, the 25-year-old joked about it too. He said that his missing the mark will give another opportunity for the media friends, to ask more questions about it. He went on to say that in javelin, staying fit is paramount, and other things will follow.
“Overall, as far as my performance is concerned, I did win a few titles, like the Asian Games, and the World Championships, so I can say, this year turned out to be all good. But the distance could have been certainly better. As everyone knows, I had an injury in between, and I had to miss three competitions.
Neeraj Chopra 90m throw
“It was difficult to make a comeback from there, but I’m glad I could be back to the winning ways. Talking about only the 90m, I remember I had said that we’ll end that topic once and for all, ‘but sorry, I’ve given everyone another opportunity to ask that question again for the next year’, he chuckled.”
He added that overall it was a good year for Indian athletics, and now they get the respect they deserve, the world over. “I would like to again say that my main aim once again is to stay injury-free. I want to give my 100% by remaining injury-free. I’m happy beyond words, the way the season has gone not just for Indian javelin, but athletics overall. Now even the Europeans believe that we have reached a certain level, which is very satisfying.”
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