Neeraj Chopra Suffered Back Injury Two Weeks Before Javelin Throw Final At World Athletics Championships

Last Updated:September 18, 2025, 19:13 IST

Neeraj Chopra reveals that he ended up hurting his back in the lead up the World Athletics Championships.

Neeraj Chopra had clinched a historic gold at the 2023 World Championships. (AFP Photo)

Former Olympic and world champion Neeraj Chopra has revealed that he ended up suffering a back injury two weeks before the javelin throw final at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. Chopra endured a disappointing result in the final, finishing eighth after managing a best throw of 84.03m.

The 27-year-old was eliminated after fouling his fifth attempt at the venue where he created history in 2021 when he won the gold medal at Tokyo Olympics.

While undergoing training in Czech Republic earlier this month, Neeraj felt a snap in his back while he was about to throw javelin following which he underwent MRI scan in Prague which revealed a problem with a disc.

“The moment I bended for a throw, I felt a jerk on my left side. After that I wasn’t even able to walk normally. Ishaan also asked me to take it easy and rest. The next day, I thought I won’t be able to make it to the athletics championships," Chopra told reporters on Thursday.

“There was some problem with the disc. I don’t know the exact medical terminology. After reaching here, I was getting treatment daily. After that it was going through my mind how I will compete now. Eventually, I started feeling a little better but being away from the training and the change of mindset left an impact," he added.

For Chopra, the turn of events, after he qualified for the final with a single attempt yesterday, was quite unusual today.

“Normally, I manage to handle (such) situations, but it wasn’t meant to be here. Before coming here, during training in Czech Republic, I suffered a back problem. Very few people knew about this, I told the federation too. I didn’t train for two weeks and was undergoing rehab for this issue. I wasn’t sure If I will be able to take part in the championships but then we decided to go ahead," he said.

“Yesterday, I managed to qualify easily. Still, I tried but couldn’t get the result because I wasn’t training and not feeling well either. We will learn from this, assess it and will try to do better the next season," he added.

Chopra, who was the defending champion, said he wasn’t in the right mindset and in fact, was more concerned about not exacerbating his back injury while attmepting to throw.

“Physically, I wasn’t happy. When I am physically fit, fitness level is high, then I am very confident of managing a good throw. Today, I was more concerned about keeping myself safe so as to not exacerbate the problem," he said.

Feroz Khan

Feroz Khan has been covering sports for over 12 years now and is currently working with Network18 as Principal Correspondent. He embarked on his journey in 2011 and has since acquired vast experience in digital...Read More

Feroz Khan has been covering sports for over 12 years now and is currently working with Network18 as Principal Correspondent. He embarked on his journey in 2011 and has since acquired vast experience in digital...

Read More

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News sports Neeraj Chopra Suffered Back Injury Two Weeks Before Javelin Throw Final At World Athletics Championships

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