Athletics
World Athletics Championships 2025: Neeraj Chopra misses out on podium for first time in 7 years
Sachin Yadav delivered a personal best of 85.96m but finished 4th in a fiercely competitive field.
Neeraj Chopra finishes 8th at World Athletics Championships
India’s Neeraj Chopra concluded the men’s javelin throw final at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo with a disappointing eighth-place finish on Thursday.
The Olympic champion managed a best throw of 83.65m in his opening attempt, which remained his longest of the five efforts.
This marks the first time since 2017 that Chopra has finished a World Championships event without earning a medal. He had previously claimed silver in 2022 and secured historic gold in Budapest in 2023. Fellow Olympic contender Arshad Nadeem also struggled, finishing 10th with a best throw of 82.75m.
The standout performer for India was Sachin Yadav, who recorded an impressive 86.27m in his first attempt to finish fourth, which was also his personal best. This marks the highest finish by an Indian thrower at the World Championships other than Chopra and India’s best placement in two decades, since Anju’s performance in Helsinki 2005.
Chopra had advanced to the finals with a strong qualifying throw of 84.50m in Group A, while Yadav joined him with an 83.67m effort, ranking sixth in Group A and 10th overall. Two other Indian athletes, Rohit Yadav and Yashvir Singh, did not make the cut, finishing 28th and 30th, respectively among 37 competitors across both qualifying groups.
In the previous edition of the championships in 2023, India had three athletes in the finals, with Kishore Jena and DP Manu placing fifth and sixth, respectively, alongside Chopra’s gold-winning performance.
While Chopra will reflect on an off day in Tokyo, Sachin Yadav’s breakthrough performance signals India’s growing depth in men’s javelin on the global stage.
The podium was dominated by international stars:
Gold: Keshorn Walcott (TTO) – 88.16m
Silver: Anderson Peters (GRN) – 87.38m
Bronze: Curtis Thompson (USA) – 86.67m
Adding to India’s highlights, Pooja set a personal best in the women’s 800m heats, clocking 2:01.03 to finish seventh in her heat. She became the third Indian at the 2025 World Championships to achieve a personal best, following Sarvesh Kushare in the men’s high jump and Sachin Yadav in the javelin throw.
