Athletics
Neeraj Chopra breaks silence after backlash over inviting Arshad Nadeem
He said, My country will always come first, and stated that the invitation was sent before the Pahalgam Terrorist attack.
Neeraj Chopra had missed out on the 2023 and 2024 editions due to injuries. (Photo Credit: ESPN)
Indian ace javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, on Friday, broke his silence after getting a consistent backlash over inviting Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan for the NC Classic Javelin-only meet.
He replied, "My country will always come first,” and stated that the invitation was sent to Arshad before the Pahalgam Terrorist attack.
The all began when Neeraj Chopra, in a virtual interaction with the media on Monday, announced the staging of the Neeraj Chopra Classic at Bengaluru on the 24th of May.
However, just a day later, the massacre of tourists at Pahalgam rocked the nation, and Neeraj Chopra became the victim of the public's anger, because he had said that Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan had been invited for the NC Classic.
" There has been so much talk about my decision to invite Arshad Nadeem for the NC Classic, and most of it is hate and abuse. They haven't even left my family out of it," Neeraj addressed the backlash he is getting.
" The Invitation I extended to Arshad was from one athlete to another -nothing more, nothing less. The aim for the NC Classic was to bring the best athletes to India, and the invites had gone out to all athletes on Monday, two days before the Pahalgam attack." He clarified his decision.
"I have carried my country with pride for so many years, and so it hurts to see my integrity being questioned. It pains me that I have to explain to people who are questioning me and my family, with no good reason." Neeraj expressed his pain he felt after this backlash.
It is hard to understand how public opinion about its icon changes at the drop of a hat, and in this case, for no fault of Chopra's.
