Athletics
Doha Diamond League 2026: Neeraj Chopra breaches CWG qualification; finishes fourth
Neeraj registered a best effort of 85.69m to mark his return after injury layoff as Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Pathirage wins with a 88.68m throw.
Neeraj Chopra finished fourth witha best effort of 85.69m in Doha on Friday. (Photo credit: Wanda Diamond League)
India’s star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra opened his 2026 season with a fourth place finish at the Doha Diamond League late on Friday.
Neeraj was competing in his first tournament since the 2025 World Athletics Championships in September last year after which he spent several months recovering from a back injury.
On Friday, the two-time Olympic medalist registered a best throw of 85.69m in his third attempt to finish fourth while breaching the Commonwealth Games qualification mark of 82.61m set by the Athletics Federation of India.
Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Tharanga won the event with a best throw of 88.68m, while former world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada finished second with 86.38m and USA’s Curtis Thompson finished third with 85.99m.
Neeraj fouled in his first attempt and returned with a throw of 82.77m in his second, a distance that was enough to confirm his place in the Indian squad for Glasgow.
He then produced throws of 85.69m and 83.45m to end his campaign with the qualification.
Last week, the AFI had named Neeraj in the 32-member athletics squad for Commonwealth Games 2026 with his selection subject to meeting the qualification standard.
The Doha Diamond League was also the first tournament since Neeraj parted ways with coach Jan Zelezny. He is now training under Indian coach Jai Chaudhary, who was once his senior and has known him for more than 15 years.
In Doha last year, Neeraj had the coveted 90m barrier, registering 90.23m only to settle for second place behind Germany’s Julian Weber.