From Tokyo to Paris: Neeraj Chopra's run-up to his title defence

In 2021 when Neeraj Chopra won the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, no one would have thought that it would start the golden era of Javelin Throw in the country.

At the age of 26, the athlete from Haryana has completed the Javelin Throw event by winning every major competition or medal at stake.

After winning the gold medal at the 2023 Asian Games in China, Neeraj is in round two of winning every major competition and the Paris Olympics is the next stop for him.

The Bridge analyses all competitions he has featured in after winning the 2020 Tokyo Olympics gold:

Neeraj Chopra in 2022:

Neeraj Chopra played in six tournament finals and won three of them. He came second in the rest three.

In his first tournament after Tokyo, Neeraj broke the national record with a throw of 89.30m at Paavo Nurmi Games and finished second. Two weeks later, he broke the national record again throwing 89.94m at the Stockholm Diamond League.

He became the first Indian male athlete to win a medal after finishing second with a throw of 88.13m at the 2022 Athletics World Championships.

• June 2022: Paavo Nurmi Games- 89.30m- 2nd Place
• June 2022: Kuortane Games- 86.69m- 1st Place
• June 2022: Stockholm Diamond League- 89.94m- 2nd Place
• July 2022: World Athletics Championships- 88.13m- 2nd Place
• August 2022: Lausanne Diamond League- 89.08m- 1st Place
• September 2022: Zurich Diamond League final- 88.44m- 1st Place

Neeraj Chopra in 2023:

After a solid season in 2022, Neeraj started early in 2023 by participating in the Doha Diamond League where he threw 88.67m to win the title.

Two months later, Neeraj threw 88.17m and won the World title at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, making him the first-ever Indian athlete to do so.

He ended his season with a gold medal at the 2023 Asian Games with a throw of 88.88m.

• May 2023: Doha Diamond League- 88.67m- 1st Place
• June 2023: Lausanne Diamond League- 87.66m- 1st Place
• August 2023: World Athletics Championships- 88.17m- 1st Place
• August 2023: Zurich Diamond League: 85.71m- 2nd Place
• September 2023: Eugene Diamond League final- 83.80m- 2nd Place
• October 2023: Asian Games, Hangzhou- 88.88m- 1st Place

Neeraj Chopra in 2024:

Neeraj is having a sub-par 2024 season as per his lofty standards and has played only in three tournaments. He has struggled with an abductor muscle niggle throughout the season.

He started the season at the Doha Diamond League with an 88.36m throw and won the title. He competed in India for the first time in three years at the Federation Cup and won it with a throw of 82.27m.

• May 2024: Doha Diamond League- 88.36m- 2nd Place
• May 2024: Federation Cup Bhubaneswar- 82.27m- 1st Place
• June 2024: Paavo Nurmi Games- 85.97m- 1st Place

Going in as the reigning Olympic Champion, Neeraj will have the pressure to defend his title but being the top performer he is, the nation is hopeful that Neeraj Chopra will continue his Zidd For More in the quest to better his performance with every big extravaganza like the Olympics and win another medal for the country this time around.