Neeraj Chopra, the new hope of India has now qualifieddirectly for the finals; his stunning throw of 86.65m has made him reach to thetop of the list in the Group A contest. The 23-year-old only made his entry in thefinals in a few seconds, the finals are on Saturday; his throw went past to thequalifying mark of 83.50 m in his first throw.
Personal life: Belonging to a farming background, hismother is a housewife, and he has 2 sisters. Born on December 24, 1997, hehails from Khandra village, Panipat district, Haryana. He completed hiseducation at DAV College, Chandigarh. He is a Junior Commissioned Officer ofthe Indian Army; he ranked as a Naib Subedar in 2016. He made a huge donation ofINR 2 Lakh during the COVID-19 pandemic in the PM Cares Fund.
Records: He has set a new national record of 88.06 m, andwas also appointed as the flag bearer at the opening ceremony. This goldmedallist has broken his own record by making a throw of 88.07 m in 2021 at theIndian Grand Prix. He became the first Indian to win a gold medal in the 2018 AsianGames, and Commonwealth Games in Javelin.
His interest: He was inspired by Jai Choudhary (Jaiveer)at the age of 11, the young mind used to see his mentor practicing in thePanipat Stadium. Jaiveer is a javelin athlete who represented Haryana. When hewas 11, his weight was 80kg, he was a chubby teen, and his interest in thisgame led him to burn some calories. His first javelin was of Rs 7000 which hepurchased in 2014, and at an international his javelin was worth INR 1 lakh.
Career: He equaled the national record of 82.23 m in2016 South Asian Games, he also made a national junior record in 2016, and inspite of his record-breaking performances he wasn’t able to qualify for 2016Summer Olympics because of the deadline. In 2018, he won gold in the 2017 AsianAthletic championship. In 2018, he became the first to bring victory in CommonWealth Games. In the 2018 Doha Diamond league, he broke the national record, and inthe same year, he broke his own record at the Asian games by throwing 88.06 m. In2021 he broke his own record, by throwing 88.07m away and bringing a World-leading position. He opened his international account in 2021, by earning goldin Portugal.
Awards: He was nominated by the AFI for the country’shighest sports award in 2018, and has won Arjuna Award in 2018 after winninggold in Gold coast Commonwealth.
The nation record-setteris having his finals on 7th August i.e. Saturday at 4.30 PM. All the hopes andprayers of the Indians are with him and hopefully, he brings laurels to thenation.