Neeraj Chopra’s Spectacular 89.34m Throw Secures Paris Olympics 2024 Javelin Final Spot
Neeraj Chopra delivered an outstanding performance as he secured a spot in the men’s javelin throw final at the Paris Olympics 2024 with a season’s best throw of 89.34m on his very first attempt.
The defending champion, Neeraj Chopra, showcased his skills by achieving a season’s best throw of 89.34m in the qualification round of the Olympic Games on Tuesday. Mirroring his Tokyo Olympics performance, the 26-year-old surpassed the automatic qualifying mark of 84m with his initial throw, placing him at the top of Group B. This impressive effort, the second-best of his career, also dispelled concerns about his fitness, as Chopra had previously mentioned battling an adductor niggle leading up to the Games. His personal best remains 89.94m, set in 2022.
Fellow Indian competitor Kishore Jena fell short of the final, finishing with a throw of 80.73m.
Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, the reigning Commonwealth Games champion, qualified for the finals with a throw of 86.59m in Group B. Grenada’s veteran Anderson Peters also advanced with a throw of 88.63m from the same group.
Chopra’s performance was the highlight of the day, as he quickly secured his place in the finals with his remarkable first throw.
Earlier, Jena finished ninth in Group A with a throw of 80.73m, eliminating him from final contention. The top 12 performers or those who throw 84m or more from Groups A and B will advance to the final on Thursday.
Jena’s throws included 80.73m initially, a foul on his second attempt, and 80.21m on his final try.
In Group A, Julian Weber of Germany led with a throw of 87.76m, followed by Kenya’s former world champion Julius Yego (85.97m) and Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch (85.63m) of Czechia. Finland’s Toni Keranen also surpassed the automatic qualification mark with an 85.27m throw.
Jena had previously secured an automatic Olympics berth with an 87.54m throw, earning a silver medal at the Asian Games in October last year. Since then, he had crossed the 80m mark only once in six competitions before Tuesday.