India athelete Neeraj Chopra on Wednesday morning threw a monstrous 86.65m in the qualification round of men’s javelin throw to enter the finals at the ongoing Tokyo Olympics. The 23-year-old athlete from Haryana is one of India’s medal hopes and his performance have kept the dreams alive among his supporters.
Interestingly, Pakistan javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem also qualified for the finals after an attempt of 85.16m in the qualifying round in his respective group, which also earned him a ticket at the finals of the event.
Soon after the event an old picture of Neeraj and Arshad from Asian Games 2018 held in Jakarta surfaced on the internet. The picture shows both Neeraj and Arshad shaking hands while standing at the podium after Neeraj won a gold medal at the event, while Arshad bagged silver. Sharing the photo many hinted at the renewed India-Pakistan rivarly at the Olympic Games.
Neeraj had then also created history at the event and created a new national record in men’s javelin throw, which the Haryana athlete again broke earlier this year at Indian Grand Prix 3 held in Patiala. He had then become the first Indian athlete to win a gold medal in men’s javelin final in the Asian Games. Until then, India last stood on the podium in the javelin event in the 1982 Asian Games held in New Delhi, when Gurtej Singh secured a bronze for the nation.
Neeraj in the Asian Games had thrown the spear 88.06m, and the 23-year-old bettered his record by 0.01m and now the national record in men’s javelin stands at 88.07m.
#NeerajChopra The record throw in pics 88.07m
New National Record
Previous Record- Neeraj Chopra 88.06m (Asian Games 2018)
Photos: @channel_total Saurabh Kaushik pic.twitter.com/AiNoEMaemK
— Athletics Federation of India (@afiindia) March 5, 2021
Here are a few reactions:
Neeraj Chopra Topped Group A with a Throw of 86.65m
Arshad Nadeem Topped Group B with a Throw of 85.16m
Javelin Throw Final on 7 August #Olympics | #Tokyo2020 pic.twitter.com/LbOcAi73rB
— (@iam_JZK) August 4, 2021
HISTORY MADE!!!
Neeraj Chopra becomes the first Indian to top the qualification at any athletics event at the Olympics.
Top 3 throws in qualification:
Neeraj Chopra 86.65m
Johannes Vetter 85.64m
Arshad Nadeem 85.16m#JavelinThrow #Athletics #Tokyo2020 pic.twitter.com/DL0aZFKcyS— India at #Tokyo2020 (@IndiansportFeed) August 4, 2021
Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, who ditched cricket for athletics as a teenager, qualifies for javelin final. After settling for bronze at the 2018 Asian Games, Nadeem had said Indian star Neeraj Chopra was his inspiration. #Athletics #Olympics pic.twitter.com/XfsVFMr26G
— Santhosh Kumar (@giffy6ty) August 4, 2021
“Arshad Nadeem had said Indian star Neeraj Chopra was his inspiration” #Tokyo2020 #Javelin https://t.co/nF8j58JxsJ
— Hari Priya CR (@cr_hariPriya) August 4, 2021
Group B of the Men’s Javelin was topped by Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem with 85.16m while group A was topped by India’s Neeraj Chopra with 86.65m. I wonder if we’re gonna see the good old Indo-Pak sporting rivalry in the Olympics this year
— Glorified Mazdoor (@naaninclusive) August 4, 2021
I wouldn’t mind seeing a repeat of this moment between Neeraj and Arshad from the Asian Games in the Olympic javelin finals tbh. pic.twitter.com/yTaBsssx7z
— jonathan selvaraj (@jon_selvaraj) August 4, 2021
In the qualification round on Wednesday, Neeraj finished at the top with a 86.65m throw, and was followed by Germany’s Johannes Vetter (85.64m), and Arshad (85.16m) in the second and third position.
