Olympic Champion Neeraj Chopra scripted history yet again . Launching the javelin to 88.17m at the National Athletics Centre in Budapest , Neeraj Chopra became India’s first ever World Athletics Championship golf medallist.
Chopra had started off with a foul throw in the final in Budapest on Sunday. However, his second throw turned out to be the winning one as he managed to get the javelin to a distance of 88.17m. It helped him stay ahead of Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, who himself made history for his his country by winning silver and Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch.
Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, playing his first international tournament after elbow surgery last December and dealing with a dodgy knee for most of this season, came second with a throw of 87.82m. The evergreen Jakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic came third. The other two Indians in the fray, Kishore Jena and DP Manu, finished fifth and sixth respectively.
Nadeem’s 81.86 in his sixth and final attempt meant Neeraj had sealed the gold. The only interest was if he could better his second-round attempt of 88.17. It was not to be as his sixth throw went 83.98m. Neeraj kissed the turf, soaked in all the adulation, went towards the fans and draped himself in the Tricolour.
On winning a gold medal at the prestigious event, Neeraj received a cash prize of $70000, which is close to 58 lakh rupees. On the other hand, his Pakistan opponent Arshad got $35,000, around 29 lakh rupees. Meanwhile, Vadlejch, who also finished on the podium received a sum of $22,000, close to 18 lakh.
Chopra has now become only the second Indian ¬ after legendary shooter Abhinav Bindra ¬ to simultaneously hold the Olympics and World Championships titles. Bindra had won the World Championships title when he was 23, and the Olympics gold at 25.
