Perhaps 20 years later, while sitting on a rocking chair, you would end up recounting all those ‘I watched it live’ moments. May 16, 2025 is one such red-letter day in Indian sport that you would cherish for a lifetime. Neeraj Chopra has already won accolades across different competitions. The list is so long that it might take a paragraph to complete it. But there was one achievement that still needed to be unlocked: Breaking the 90m barrier. On a humid night in Doha, he finally cracked the code and crossed the mark with a throw of 90.23m.
That he came second best to Julian Weber didn’t matter. In simple words, Neeraj had won Diamond Leagues in the past. So, the bigger narrative to emerge from the night was Neeraj breaking the 90m jinx. In the previous years, he had come within touching distance of surpassing 90m. Here, just think of his five best throws prior to his effort in Doha: 89.94, 89.49, 89.45, 89.34 and 89.30m.
This is a sport where milliseconds or centimeters matter. So, what could have helped Neeraj to find that little bit of extra momentum? In this context, working with the legendary Jan Zelezny must have played a part. After all, we are talking about the record holder in Javelin; someone who crossed the 90m mark a whopping 52 times. Here is what Michael Musselmann, a Javelin coach, had to say on Social Media about tweaks in Neeraj’s methods: “We can see the changes, less rotation, more linear, left-arm stays very close, Zelezny and Neeraj working on some key points.”
Before the event, Neeraj himself had said this about the changes that he made to his technique: “I believe a 90 throw is happening soon. He (Jan Zelezny) has made some technical adjustments in my game,” Neeraj told India Today. “He (Zelezny) feels that his tweaks would help me. I’ve been able to understand what he expects from me.
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“One of the mistakes that he told me about was how I was throwing very low even in Paris and that I was leaning towards the left. If I am able to incorporate those changes, I think I will get a lot better,” he added. Neeraj certainly put his coach’s thoughts into practice to get the desired result.
Nine years have gone by since Neeraj won the Gold at the World Junior Championships. That achievement has now become just a footnote in his impressive career. So, where is Neeraj now? Has he fulfilled his promise? In truth, Neeraj hasn’t just done that, he has raised the bar by several notches.
He has either been placed first or bagged the gold medal at the Olympics, World Championships, Diamond League, Diamond League Finals, Asian Games, World Junior Championships, South Asian Games, Asian Championships and Commonwealth Games. Basically, his worst performance is a silver at the Asian Junior Championships. Remember, Neeraj is still just 27 years old. Fingers-crossed, there is more to come. Perhaps another medal at the Olympics or World Championships? Maybe for Neeraj to consistently break the 90m mark? There is no harm in dreaming.
Also Read: Exclusive: After breaking 90m barrier, Neeraj wants to aim higher