Neeraj Chopra continued his golden run in Indian athletics becoming the first track and field player to win a gold at the World Championships. Chopra, who has had a tough year in the run-up to the Championships, first ensured that he confirmed his qualification for the Paris Olympics and then won the final in his second attempt with a throw of 88.17m, his eighth personal best. Chopra overcame the challenge thrown by his Pakistani rival Arshad Nadeem, who got to a throw of 87.82m.
It wasn’t an auspicious start for Neeraj, who committed a foul in the very first attempt. However, if anyone has watched Neeraj since his Tokyo Olympics gold, he needs just one good throw and that’s that. And as expected, that throw came just in his second attempt as he covered the distance of 88.17 metres. Nadeem threatened to come close, with two successive attempts of 87 metres plus, having recorded his season best but Neeraj’s second attempt was too good to beat. Jakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic came third with a throw of 86.67 metres.
This was India’s third medal at the World Athletics Championships after Anju Bobby George’s bronze in 2003 in Paris, Neeraj’s silver last year in Eugene and now the treble is completed by the historic gold in Budapest. This is a new feather in Neeraj’s already decorated cap with an Olympic gold, an Asian Games Gold, a Diamond League gold and a Commonwealth Games gold among other top achievements.
The other two Indian athletes in the competition, Kishore Jena and DP Manu also did well finishing 5th and 6th with throws of 84.77 and 84.14 metres, respectively with the former recording his personal best.
For Arshad, it was a history-making moment for Pakistan as he became the very first medallist from his country at the World Athletics Championships.
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