Paris: Star India Javelin Thrower and World Championships Gold Medalist Javelin Thrower Neeraj Chopra will be aiming to repeat his Tokyo 2020 heroics to retain his title at the ongoing Paris Olympics on Thursday.
Chopra registered a huge throw of 89.34 metres in Group B of the men's javelin throw qualification round at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday and made his way into the finals.
The final will be played on Thursday at 11:55 pm IST. He successfully breached the qualification mark of 84.00 m.
However, the competition would be fierce as the final will feature the likes of Czech Republic's Jakub Vadlejch, the 2020 silver medalist, Julian Weber of Germany, the 2022 European Champion and the two-time world champion, Anderson Peters from Grenada.
Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem, who is also one of Neeraj's closest rivals, joined the Indian star for the men's javelin final with his season-best throw of 86.59 m.
Arshad and Neeraj have developed a healthy rivalry over the years, with Neeraj dominating the head-to-head record 9-0. However, Arshad's best effort of 90.18 m in the 2022 Commonwealth Games is ahead of Neeraj's top effort.
Chopra's first attempt during the qualification was his all-time second-best throw at a men's javelin event, with his top throw coming at Stockholm Diamond League 2022 with a distance of 89.94 m.
It was also the 26-year-old's best throw in any qualification round. Now, the Indian will be aiming to touch the much-talked-about distance of 90.00 m during the final and retain his gold.
After his throw at the qualification, Chopra laid out the differences between playing at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 and in Paris this year and also said that defending his title serves as a motivation to him. (with Agency inputs)
