Athletics
'My body didn’t feel good': Neeraj Chopra after finishing 2nd at Lausanne DL
After failing to cross the 85m mark in his first four throws, Neeraj gave his all in the last attempt - 89.49m - that secured him second place.
Neeraj Chopra, the Olympic gold and silver medal-winning javelin thrower, finished second at the Lausanne Diamond League 2024 with a season-best throw of 89.49m on Thursday night.
Despite the best of his efforts, he was seen struggling with an adductor issue that has been troubling him for over a year now.
Although his first four throws were below 85m, Neeraj gave his all in the final two attempts, throwing 85.58m and 89.49m respectively, the latter being his season best - secured second place.
Anderson Peters of Grenada set a new meet record with a giant throw of 90.61m to claim the first place while Julian Weber of Germany finished third with an 87.08m throw.
Neeraj came so close to the elusive 90m throw that he has been chasing for a while now, but given his physical condition, this is something he would be content with.
Speaking to the broadcasters after the event, Neeraj said, "In the beginning, it was really hard today. My body didn’t feel good. But I pushed myself mentally in the fifth and last attempt. I really liked that comeback with my second-best throw.”
Neeraj also spoke of how Julius Yego kept him calm before the final throw, which incidentally was his best throw.
"In the last throw, I didn’t think much and I just gave my best. I think too much. In the beginning, I was thinking I have to do this, do that. But Julius Yego told me, ‘Stay relaxed, you will throw far.’ So I tried to stay relaxed and hit it clean," he said.
Speaking on his injury, Neeraj said that it has not been worrisome since the Paris Olympics, thanks to the work of his physio, Ishan Marwaha.
"Luckily after Paris, it was not too much. So I did some treatment with my physio. He did well and I feel good. I did some very easy throwing sessions after Paris. And it was a strange competition today. In the beginning, I did not feel that I could throw that far but in the end it was really good," said Neeraj.
The ace athlete now wants to focus on completely nursing his injury and come back stronger for his next event.
"Maybe maximum one more competition and then (I’ll) finish the season. First, my goal is to go to the doctor and I want to make my groin 100% fit. It will help me be more technically better next year and then maybe I will try to throw far again,” he concluded.
Neeraj is also in contention for a place in the Diamond League Final, which will be held in Brussels on September 13-14.