Neeraj Chopra qualifies for javelin final at Paris Olympics 2024 after 89.34m throw

Neeraj Chopra entered the javelin throw final at Paris Olympics with his first throw of 89.34m.

Defending Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra qualified for the javelin throw final at the Paris Olympics. | Photo Credit: RITU RAJ KONWAR

Defending Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra qualified for the javelin throw final at the Paris Olympics with an 89.34m throw (Group B) at the Stade de France on Tuesday. This is Neeraj’s best throw at a global championship and his second-best ever, after 89.94m in the Stockholm Diamond League. He qualified on his first attempt. 

Earlier in the year, Neeraj had thrown 88.36m in Doha and also won the Paavo Nurmi Games with a throw of 85.97m.

In the qualification event, Neeraj’s fellow Indian athlete Kishore Jena threw 80.73m in Group A. But it was not enough to make the cut. He finished ninth in his group and 18th overall.

Meanwhile, from Group A, Kenya’s Julius Yego and Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch automatically qualified for the final with impressive throws of 85.97m and 85.63m respectively. Germany’s Julian Weber also qualified with a throw of 87.76m and so did Anderson Peters, who threw 88.63m, his season’s best.

Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem hit 86.59m to qualify in group B. From the same group, Mauricio Luiz de Silva of Brazil also made it to the final with a best throw 85.91 in his third attempt.

There was automatic qualification for all those who passed 84m.