Indian Grand Prix 3: Neeraj Chopra rewrites national record, Hima Das races without competitors

Neeraj Chopra previous record of 88.06 was set at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, where he also clinched the gold for his effort. The 23-year-old has already qualified for Tokyo Olympics in January last year.

File photo of Neeraj Chopra and Hima Das

India's top javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra on Friday improved his national mark by 0.01 metre by hurling the spear at a distance of 88.07 metre at the Indian Grand Prix's third leg in Patiala. 

Meanwhile, Shivpal Singh (81.63 m) and 20-year-old Sahil Silwal (80.65 m) bagged the second and third position respectievly.

This was the first event Panipat-born Neeraj took part in since the Covid-induced hiatus. He landed the record-breaking throw in his fifth attempt at the National Institute of Sports. 

His previous record of 88.06 was set at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, where he also clinched the gold for his effort. The 23-year-old has already qualified for Tokyo Olympics in January last year. 

In the 100 metre event, India’s ‘Dhing Express’, Hima Das, clinched gold as she completed the distance with timing of 11.67 seconds. However, after the conclusion of Hima's race, many took to social media to point out the lack of participants against her. She was alone in the race and as per a report in The Bridge, Punjab's Amrit Kaur was the only athlete taking part in the race but later decided to back out.

Hima, who was the lone athlete taking part in the event, decided to continue with the race and went on to win the gold, and no one won the silver.