Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Neeraj Chopra on 30 June set a new national record with an opening throw of 89.94m at the Stockholm Diamond League. However, the 24-year-old missed the 90m mark by a whisker in a star-studded field and came second in the competition. Neeraj Chopra sets new national record of 89.94m, finishes 2nd in Diamond League. His previous record of 89.30m was set in the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku in Finland on 14 June.
The Tokyo Olympics gold medalist 24-year-old Chopra opened with a stunning throw of 89.94m, just 6cm shy of the 90m mark, the gold standard in the world of javelin throw and that effort eventually turned out to be his best as he finished second. His other throws measured 84.37m, 87.46m, 84.77m, 86.67 and 86.84m. World champion and season leader Anderson Peters of Grenada won the competition with a best throw of 90.31m which he came up with in this third attempt.
“Today, I feel good and after first throw, I thought I could throw even over 90m today. But it is OK as I have more competitions coming this year,” Chopra said after the event. “I am close to 90m now and I can throw it this year. Despite the fact that I did not win tonight, I feel very good because I did my best.”
Peters has thrown 90m-plus twice this season 93.07m while winning the Doha leg of the Diamond League last month before 90.75m effort at Hengelo in the Netherlands. Julian Weber of Germany was third with a fifth round throw of 89.08m while Tokyo Olympic silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch (88.59m) of Czech Republic was fourth.
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Another Czech athlete and Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Vitezslav Vesely was seventh in the eight-man field with 82.57m. Chopra has beaten Peters twice this month in Turku where the athlete from Grenada was third and in the Kuortane Games, also in Finalnd, where the Indian superstar had won gold with a best throw of 86.69m under wet and slippery conditions.
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