Tokyo: India’s Olympic medalist and world champion javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra will begin his title defence at the ongoing World Athletics Championships, starting with the men’s javelin throw qualifiers in Tokyo on Wednesday.
The medal round is scheduled for Thursday, with Neeraj’s much-anticipated clash against Pakistani rival and reigning Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem expected to be one of the competition’s key highlights.
In 2023, Neeraj made history as the first Indian to win a World Championships gold medal, throwing 88.17 m in Budapest, while Arshad secured silver with 87.82 m, according to Olympics.com. However, at the Tokyo Olympics, Arshad outshone Neeraj with an Olympic record throw of 92.97 m, claiming gold and leaving Neeraj with silver—further intensifying a rivalry largely dominated by the Indian star.
Currently ranked world number two, Neeraj is aiming for a third consecutive World Championships medal. He became India’s first male medalist and silver medalist at the 2022 edition, followed by his historic gold in Budapest in 2023.
Neeraj has had a stellar 2025 season so far. He clinched the top spot at the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic, held at Bengaluru’s Sri Kanteerava Outdoor Stadium in July, with a throw of 86.18 m.
The season began with a win at the Potch Invitational in Potchefstroom, South Africa, in April, followed by a special second-place finish at the Doha Diamond League in May, where he crossed the 90-metre mark for the first time, throwing 90.23 m. He then claimed second place at the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial in Poland, before securing back-to-back wins at the Paris Diamond League and Ostrava Golden Spike with throws of 88.16 m and 85.29 m, respectively.
In late August, Chopra extended his streak of top-two finishes by claiming second at the Diamond League final in Zurich with a best throw of 85.01 m. Germany’s Julian Weber topped the event with a massive 91.51 m throw on his second attempt. Despite a shaky start, including two early throws in the 80s and three fouls, Neeraj’s final throw ensured his record of finishing in the top two in 26 consecutive events remained intact.
This season, in terms of distance thrown, Neeraj ranks third behind Germany’s Julian Weber and Brazil’s Luiz da Silva.
The World Championships field features 37 throwers divided into two groups, competing for 12 spots in Thursday’s final, with automatic qualification set at 84.50 m. Neeraj will compete in Group A, while Arshad is in Group B. India also has three other athletes vying for a place in the final: Sachin Yadav (Group A), and Rohit Yadav and Yashvir Singh (Group B).
