Tokyo 2020
Neeraj Chopra's social media popularity rises, gets 2.9 million mentions from 1.4 million users
Even after a month since the memorable Tokyo Olympics, gold medallist Neeraj Chopra's fame rises rapidly
Neeraj Chopra (Source: Times of India)
Indians all around the world and social media gushed over the javelin thrower and winning the country's historic gold medal in athletics at the Tokyo Olympics. His popularity in the online world wasn't a fad but has lived on even after the games. Be it the number of followers or the increased number of brand endorsements, Neeraj Chopra has slowly, or rather, quite rapidly become an icon of the country.
The main indicator of his rising fame is his followers. The athlete's social media followers increased by over a million within just a day of winning the gold medal. After adding almost 3 million Instagram followers in the span of a week of the Olympics, it was sure enough that he had become the second-most marketable athlete in the country, second only to Virat Kohli.
According to a report by a consultancy firm called YouGov SPORT, Chopra received over 2.9 million mentions thanks to over 1.4 million users, making the athlete 'the most mentioned athlete globally' on Instagram during the Tokyo Olympics. These numbers have increased his social and digital media reach to a huge extent, which resulted in his social media valuation coming to a whopping Rs 482 crores. His constant appearance in interviews and news channels has certainly contributed to his social media engagement. This has made the athletics star surpass prominent cricketers like KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant.
Be it the millions of mentions or the flashing title cards on our television sets, the 23-year old's name can be heard in every household and has become a part of every other living room conversation.
