Agencies
Budapest
Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra made athletics history for India again when he became their first ever world champion, a year after after also getting the nation’s first Olympic gold in the sport.
Chopra improved from silver last year to gold with 88.17 metres he achieved in his second attempt as he beat Commonwealth Games champion Arshad Nadeem who came close with 87.82 minutes and got a first-ever medal for Pakistan.
The flamboyant Chopra – one of three Indians to reach the final – fell to the ground after his final throw and kissed the surface before charging towards the crowd.
Czech Jakub Vadlejch stole the bronze with his final attempt from German European champion Julian Weber, a result that also means that former powerhouse Germany go home without a medal for the first time in championship history.
The other two Indian javelin throwers in contention – Kishore Jena and DP Manu – also produced impressive performances even as they couldn’t secure podium spots. Both throwers qualified for the top-8 positions and finished fifth and sixth respectively.
While Jena had the highest registered throw of 84.77m – also his personal best – Manu threw 84.14m.
Finland’s Oliver Helander took the lead with a throw of 83.38 m. Chopra’s first throw was a foul. At the end of the first round of attempts, Helander led the field.
In the second attempt, Vadlejch took the lead with a throw of 84.18 m. However, Neeraj overcame the nerves of a bad start, outdoing Jakub with a monstrous 88.17 m throw to take the lead.
In the third throw, Neeraj recorded 86.32 m, the second-best in the competition so far. He managed to maintain his lead. However, with a massive throw of 87.82 m, Pakistan’s Commonwealth Games champion Arshad Nadeem jumped to the number two spot. He recorded his season-best throw and less than a meter separated him with the Olympic champion Neeraj.
With a third attempt of 83.72 m, Manu was still at fifth. Jena’s third attempt was a foul and he remained at seventh spot. Neeraj led with 88.17 at the end of round three of attempts.
Jena’s fourth attempt was 80.19 m and kept him at the seventh spot at the start of fourth round of attempts. Manu’s fourth attempt was a foul, keeping him at the fifth spot. Neeraj recorded the fourth throw of 84.64 m, still in the lead. However, Nadeem was still pretty close to him, throwing 87.15 m in the fourth attempt and having the second-best throw overall from earlier.
Neeraj led the field at the end of the fourth round of attempts.
Jena’s fifth attempt was 84.77 m, taking him to fourth spot, one away from a bronze. Nadeem’s fifth throw was a foul, delivering a blow to his hopes of a first spot. Neeraj’s fifth throw was 87.73 m and kept him in the lead. However, it was just inches away from Nadeem’s second-best throw of 87.82 m from earlier.
In the final round, Nadeem’s throw was 81.86 m and failed to overcome Neeraj’s 88.17m.