Neeraj Chopra, India Target History At World Championships In Tokyo Showdown

Last Updated:September 12, 2025, 18:56 IST

Neeraj Chopra leads India at the World Championships in Tokyo, aiming to defend his javelin gold against rivals like Arshad Nadeem with strong participation in athletics.

Neeraj Chopra during a press conference.

Neeraj Chopra aims to become the third men’s javelin thrower in history to defend the World Championships gold as he carries the nation’s hopes on his shoulders as the sole Indian medal contender in the athletics showpiece starting here on Saturday.

Chopra won gold in the 2023 edition in Budapest with a throw of 88.17m, while Pakistan’s reigning Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem (87.82m) and Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch (86.67m) took silver and bronze respectively.

If the two-time Olympic medallist wins gold on September 18, the finals day, he will be the third man ever to win the world championships javelin title in two consecutive editions. Legendary Czech thrower Jan Zelezny (1993 and 1995), who is now Chopra’s coach, and Anderson Peters (2019 and 2022) of Grenada are the other two who have achieved this feat.

Leading a 19-member Indian team as the lone medal hopeful, Chopra will face Nadeem for the first time in over a year since the 2024 Paris Olympics, presenting a chance to avenge his second-place finish in the French capital.

However, it will not be easy for the 27-year-old Chopra to secure the gold in a highly competitive field in Tokyo — the same venue where he won Olympic gold in 2021. The world’s top javelin throwers, including Nadeem and newly-crowned Diamond League champion, Julian Weber of Germany, will be competing.

Other notable contenders include Peters, Kenya’s 2015 world champion Julius Yego, 2012 Olympic champion Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago, veteran Vadlejch, and Brazil’s Luiz da Silva, who recently threw over 90m with a 91m throw last month. The men’s javelin qualifying round will take place on September 17.

On current form, Weber is the favourite. The 31-year-old German has thrown the spear beyond 90m three times this season, leading the world with 91.51m and riding high on confidence after winning the Diamond League trophy last month.

Chopra breached the coveted 90m mark during the Doha Diamond League in May, but he has also recorded some mediocre distances this year. He failed to surpass 85m in two competitions, went slightly over 85m on two occasions, and managed an 86m-plus effort in another event. His second-best throw this year was 88.16m.

In head-to-head competition against Weber this season, Chopra trails 1-3, with their last meeting being at last month’s Diamond League Final where the Indian managed 85.01m for a second-place finish.

Three other Indians in men’s javelin

Sachin Yadav, Yashvir Singh, and Rohit Yadav are also competing, making India the country with the most athletes in men’s javelin. Chopra has a wild card as the defending champion, while the other three qualified through world rankings.

Men’s javelin is the event Indian athletics fans will follow closely after the impressive performance in the last edition. Three Indians reached the final round in 2023 in Budapest. Besides Chopra’s gold, Kishore Jena and DP Manu finished fifth and sixth respectively.

Other Indian athletes to watch include Annu Rani (women’s javelin throw), Parul Chaudhary (women’s 3000m steeplechase), Murali Sreeshankar (men’s long jump), Gulveer Singh (men’s 5000m), and Praveen Chithravel (men’s triple jump), all aiming to reach the final rounds.

The 33-year-old Rani is competing in her fifth World Championships, having participated in 2017, 2019, 2022, and 2023. She reached the final in 2019 and 2022 but exited in the qualifying rounds in the other two editions. After a mediocre 2024, she is in good form this year with a season-best of 62.59m and aims to improve her best finish of seventh from 2022.

Returning from a long injury lay-off, Sreeshankar made it to the World Championships at the last minute. He has won all five competitions since his return but needs to exceed his season-best of 8.05m to be in medal contention.

National record holder sprinter Animesh Kujur will be the first Indian to compete in the men’s 200m race at a World Championships, though his advancement remains uncertain. The same goes for national record holder Tejas Shirse in men’s 110m hurdles.

Indian action begins on Saturday with the men’s and women’s 35km race walk events. Ram Baboo and Sandeep Kumar will compete in the men’s 35km race walk, while Priyanka Goswami will feature in the corresponding women’s event early in the morning. Pooja will run her 1500m heat race in the evening session.

(With PTI Inputs)

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