One of India’s brightest medal hopes at the Paris 2024 Olympics, Neeraj Chopra, will be gearing up to defend the gold medal he won at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics soon.
Neeraj comes into the event with a season-best of 88.36m (his personal best is 89.94m) and is currently ranked number 2 in the world.
The 26-year-old will get his Olympic campaign underway with the qualification round held on 6th August, with the finals to be scheduled on 8th August.
The javelin throw event is expected to be highly competitive this time around. Here are some of Neeraj’s top rivals and medal contenders at the Paris Summer Games.
Arshad Nadeem - Pakistan
FILE PHOTO: Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem has a personal best throw of 90.18m | Photo Credit: AP
Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan has competed strongly with Neeraj Chopra in the past at the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games. Nadeem finished fifth in Tokyo, and though he does not have a world rank, he comes into the Olympics with a personal best of 90.18m and a season best of 84.21m.
Jakub Vadlejch - Czechia
Czechia’s Jakub Vadlejch ran Chopra the closest in Tokyo, winning silver. Vadlejch comes into Paris ranked number one in the world. He has a personal best of 90.88m and a season best of 88.65m.
Julian Weber - Germany
FILE PHOTO: Germany’s Julian Weber has the season-best throw of 88.37m. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
The number 3 in the world rankings is currently occupied by Julian Weber of Germany, who finished fourth at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. His personal best is 89.54m and his best for the season is 88.37m.
Anderson Peters - Grenada
FILE PHOTO: Grenada’s Anderson Peters in action. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
Anderson Peters currently occupies the number 6 position in the world rankings and holds a chance of competing at the Paris Olympics. His personal best is an impressive 93.07m, and his best for the season is 86.62m.
Max Dehning - Germany
FILE PHOTO: Germany’s Max Dehning has a throw over 90m.
Max Dehning is a newer contender to challenge for a podium place this year. Though his world ranking is 22, he set his season and personal best of 90.20m at the German Winter Throwing Championships this year.
Kishore Jena - India
FILE PHOTO: India’s Kishore Jena is the Asian Games silver medallist at the Hangzhou games in 2023. | Photo Credit: AFP
India’s other representative hoping to put up a strong performance in Paris is Kishore Jena. Jena is currently ranked number seven in the world and has a personal best of 87.54m. His season’s best is 80.84m.
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