One throw, that was all Neeraj Chopra needed to ensure that he would be defending his men’s javelin crown at the World Athletics Championships 2025 finals in Tokyo on Thursday.
Neeraj Chopra, a two-time Olympic medallist, comfortably booked his place in the medal round with an 84.85m throw in Group A of the qualifiers at the Tokyo National Stadium on Wednesday. The automatic qualification mark was set at 84.50m.
The 27-year-old Indian athlete, currently world No. 2, began the proceedings in his group and breached the mark with his very first throw.
Neeraj Chopra’s personal best is 90.23m – also the Indian national record – achieved at the Doha Diamond League earlier this year.
“It feels great to qualify for the final in the first round. Now, I need to stay healthy and focus. I think I am ready. I need to concentrate and give my best,” Neeraj Chopra said after securing his spot in the 12-man final.
Germany’s Julian Weber, the top-ranked men’s javelin thrower in the world currently, fell short with his first throw but came good with a second haul of 87.21m.
Poland’s Dawid Wegner was the only other athlete from Group A, who earned a direct qualification with a new personal best of 85.67m.
India’s Sachin Yadav finished sixth in Group A with a commendable 83.67m throw and managed to squeeze into the final after finishing 10th overall. Keshorn Walcott and Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch also made it through via rankings.
Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, the reigning Olympic champion, qualified from Group B with an 85.28m throw with his third and final attempt.
Anderson Peters of Grenada, Olympic medal winner Julius Yego of Kenya and the USA’s Curtis Thompson also breached the automatic mark from Nadeem’s group.
At the last edition of the World Championships in Budapest two years ago, Neeraj Chopra created history by becoming India’s first world champion in athletics with a throw of 88.17m. Arshad Nadeem took silver with 87.82m.
However, the standing was flipped at the Paris 2024 Olympics last year. Another Neeraj Chopra vs Arshad Nadeem will be on the cards in Tokyo on Thursday.
India’s Rohit Yadav (77.81m) and Yashvir Singh (77.51m), also in Group B, couldn’t qualify for the final after finishing 28th and 30th overall.
Overall, 12 athletes out of 37 will qualify for the final. Barring those who breach the automatic qualification mark, the next best throwers made the cut until the quota was filled.
Meanwhile, India’s Praveen Chithravel and Abdulla Aboobacker both landed short of the men’s triple jump final qualification in Tokyo.
With the automatic qualification mark set at 17.10m or the top 12 performers from the qualifiers, Praveen Chithravel was eighth in Group B with a 16.74m best effort and 15th overall.
Abdulla Aboobacker managed 16.33m for 10th place in Group A and 24th place overall in a field of 36.
Animesh Kujur, the first Indian sprinter to qualify for the World Championships, also endured disappointment in Japan as he clocked 20.77 seconds to finish last in his heats and failed to make the semis.
