'The feeling wasn't great at first': Neeraj Chopra explains how he overcame tough start to throw 89.49m & finish 2nd in Lausanne Diamond League

In his first appearance after bagging silver medal at the Paris Olympics 2024, India’s star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra pulled off his career’s second-best throw to finish second. While the final scores will show that Neeraj missed the 90 metre mark again, he struggled at the start as he could not cross the 84-metre mark in first four throws. However, he climbed to the second spot with a throw of 89.49 metre, better than what he registered at Paris Olympics 2024 and his career’s second-best. Neeraj was happy with his comeback despite finishing second again.
 

"The feeling wasn´t great at first, but I´m happy with my throw, especially the second-best throw on my last attempt. It was a tough start, but the comeback was really nice and I enjoyed the fighting spirit I showed. Even though my early throws were around 80-83 meters, I pushed hard in the last two attempts finishing strong. Competing at this high level, it´s important to stay mentally tough and fight through," said the 26-year-old after the event.

Neeraj started with an 82.10 metre throw. He entered the top three with a throw of 83.21 metre. His third throw of 83.12 metre did not help in the rankings. He followed it up with a throw of 82.34 metre but reached the top three as he threw 85.58 metre. While Anderson Peters broke the meet record with a throw of 90.61 metre, Neeraj saved his best for last. His 89.49 metre throw on last attempt helped him finish second. He surpassed Germany's Julian Weber who finished third with a throw of 87.08 metre.

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Diamond League standings

Neeraj is currently in top three in the Diamond League standings. Neeraj has 14 points from two events. The first stop is occupied by Grenada's Peters with 21 points. He is followed up Czech Republic's Jakub Vadlejch with 16 points from three events. Neeraj has 14 points from two events. He is tied with Weber who has 14 points from two events as well.

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What’s next for Neeraj?

This was his best showing at Lausanne Diamond League. In 2022, he threw 87.66 metre and followed it up with an 89.08 metre throw. Neeraj's next assignment is in Zurich on September 5. It will be followed by Diamond League final in Brussels on September 13-14.
 

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