New Delhi: Fresh off breaching the elusive 90m mark in Doha, Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra is set to test his limits once again at the prestigious ORLEN Janusz Kusocinski Memorial meet in Chorzow, Poland, on Friday. The Indian javelin star will go head-to-head once more with Germany’s Julian Weber, who narrowly edged him out in a thrilling final round in Doha.
Chopra launched his javelin to a personal best of 90.23m at the Doha Diamond League last week, marking his first-ever throw beyond 90m. However, it wasn’t enough to clinch victory as Weber, the 2022 European champion and 2024 silver medallist, recorded a stunning 91.06m throw in his final attempt—his first time breaking the 90m barrier.
Also in the eight-man lineup in Poland is Grenada’s Anderson Peters, a two-time world champion with a personal best of 93.07m. Peters finished third in Doha with a throw of 84m. The field will also feature top Polish throwers Marcin Krukowski (PB: 89.55m), Cyprian Mrzyglod (PB: 84.97m), and Dawid Wegner (PB: 82.21m), alongside Moldova’s Andrian Mardare (PB: 86.66m) and Ukraine’s Artur Felfner (PB: 84.32m).
For Chopra, the 90m milestone has been a long-standing target since he first crossed the 88m mark in 2018. Now that he’s achieved it, the 27-year-old is determined to keep pushing the boundaries.
“This is just the beginning,” Chopra said after the Doha meet. “There’s a long season ahead, and I believe I can produce more 90m-plus throws.”
Chopra also shared that he’s feeling stronger and healthier this year, having finally overcome a persistent groin injury that hampered his performance in recent seasons. He has been training under javelin legend and world record-holder Jan Zelezny since February and is still refining his technique.
“We are working on some areas of my throw, and I am still learning a lot,” he added. “This year I feel much better physically, and that’s showing in my results.”
Chopra was initially scheduled to compete at the inaugural NC Classic in Bengaluru on May 24, an event he was set to host, but it was postponed due to escalating military tensions between India and Pakistan.
The meet in Poland marks his third outing of the season. He opened his campaign in April at the Potch Invitational in South Africa, a World Athletics Continental Tour Challenger event, where he won with a throw of 84.52m.
The ORLEN Janusz Kusocinski Memorial, part of the World Athletics Continental Tour silver tier, is Poland’s oldest running track and field meet, dating back to 1954. It continues to attract elite global talent and will provide Chopra with another high-quality competitive platform.
Following the Poland meet, Chopra will next compete at the Golden Spike 2025 in Ostrava, Czech Republic, on June 24. He hopes to make his debut there after being forced to withdraw from the last two editions due to injury.
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