Reuters, TOKYO, Aug 7 – On Saturday, Neeraj Chopra won the men’s javelin
with a “best throw” of 87.58 meters, becoming Neeraj Chopra the 1st Indian to win an Olympic gold medal in athletics.
Jakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic won “silver” with a time of 86.67 meters, while Vitezslav Vesely of
Slovakia took bronze with a time of 85.44 meters.
Chopra, the 2018 Commonwealth champions, took the lead with a throw of 87.03 meters on his first try,
In front of his ecstatic teammates and coaches, he earned India’s first gold medal at the Tokyo Games by
covering a distance no other participant in the final had covered.
Vadlejch and Vesely tried to reach the top of the podium on their last throws, but they both fouled.
Chopra remarked, “It feels incredible.” “It’s a great moment for me and my Country since this is our first Olympic medal in a long time,
and in athletics, it’s the first time we’ve won gold, so it’s a proud moment for myself and my country.”
Chopra felt his Games were on the right track this week with a qualifying round best throw of 86.65, but
he never considered gold a certain conclusion.
“I threw really well in the qualifying round, so I felt I could do even better in the final. I had no idea it would be gold, but I am overjoyed “he said
After Abhinav Bindra won the 10-meter air rifle event at the 2008 Olympics, Chopra became just the
second Indian to win an individual Olympic gold medal.
Bindra said on Twitter: “Your performance has further raised what has been apparent throughout the
Games — that our athletes are not only capable of going toe to toe with the best, but are firmly establishing ourselves as the favorites.”
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Chopra wins a historic javelin gold for India in athletics.
“It may have taken almost a century for us to win our first individual gold,
but the relatively short time it took you to bring home the second is a strong sign that we, as a sports country, are on the rise.”
Chopra’s victory was greeted with joy by his countrymen, especially India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“At Tokyo, history has been written!” Modi took to Twitter to express himself. “Neeraj, a young man, has
performed well. He played with an incredible amount of unparalleled grit
.”
The night was a letdown for Johannes Vetter, Germany’s favorite on the podium as the only competitor to throw over 90 meters into the final. At 82.52 he finished ninth.
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Athletics-Chopra wins historic javelin gold for India
