Indian elite javelin throwers begin camp in Bhubaneswar

Elite Indian Javelin throwers including the likes of Neeraj Chopra, Shivraj Singh, Annu Rani, Rohit Yadav and Rajinder Singh have begun a month long training camp at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. This is for the first time that the Indian javelin stars would be seen practicing together since the coronavirus imposed lockdown in March.

The athletes who shifted their training base from NIS Patiala to the Kalinga Stadium in Odisha will be training under the watchful eyes of Uwe Hon and Dr. Klaus.

The Kalinga stadium has very fond memories for the young Neeraj Chopra who had clinched his gold medal in the Asian Athletics Championships 2017 at this very ground.

The 10 member Indian Athletic team comprising of @Neeraj_chopra1, Shivpal Singh, Rajinder Singh, Rohit Yadav & Annu Rani have arrived in Bhubaneswar for their training ahead of @Tokyo2020. pic.twitter.com/mymbXZGdQt

— Odisha Sports (@sports_odisha) December 3, 2020

“We are here for training of Olympics 2021. In 2017, I won a gold here and have fond memories of the city. With our best efforts we are hoping to do well in the Olympics,” said Neeraj to The Times of India.

It is reported that the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) has been laid down for the athletes to follow with utmost importance given to the coronavirus protocols.

Out of the athletes training at the Kalinga Stadium, Neeraj Chopra and Shivraj Singh have already booked their berth for the Tokyo Olympics while the others need to be at their absolute best during the qualifying events to stand a chance to represent India at the upcoming Olympics.