India's javelin star Neeraj Chopra turns 25 today. The golden boy from Haryana in India is a big hero in the country today, all thanks to his dedication and hard work which has brought many laurels for the country. Neeraj has made India proud on global stage. He is a champion in javelin and one of the biggest role models but that aside, the 25-year-old is also a very rare humble person. Hopefully, the year 2023 will turn out to be as great as previous years for Neeraj. On the occasion of his 25 bitthday, let's revist some of the top achievements of his superb career so far. Take a look below.
Neeraj Chopra made headlines when he threw 86.48m at the World Junior Championships in Poland. This, at that time, was the new U-20 World Record as well. He announced himself in world javelin with this performace, surpassing the previous best record held by Latvia's Zigismunds Sirmais which was 84.69m. (Image source: Twitter)
Neeraj Chopra wrote history last year at World Championships when he became only the second India and the first male Track and Field athlete from India to win a medal at World Championships. He threw a distance of 88.13m to finish second and grabbed the silver medal position, achieving his dream for a World medal. Before Neeraj, Anju Bobby George had claimed a bronze medal for India in long jump event.
Who can forget August 7, 2021 when Neeraj Chopra became only the second individual gold medallist from India in the Olympic Games and the first Track and Field athlete to win any medal at the Games. Neeraj did it with an iconic throw of 87.58m at the Tokyo Olympics 2020. He became a hero in a nation obsessed with cricket.
The year 2021 turned out to be amazing for Neeraj Chopra with the gold medal in the bag. But 2022 was equally good. He bagged the World Athletics silver as well as second position in Diamond League. He did it with a throw of 89.94m which is best till date, missing the elusive mark of 90b by just 0.6m. He finished second behind rival Anderson Peters of Grenada who threw a distance of 90.31m.
Neeraj broke his national record twice last year and currently holds the javelin record in male category with a distance of 89.94m which he threw in the Stockhold Diamond League. This year he will aim to surpass the elusive 90m mark which is a sign of a greatness of a javelin athlete.