It is time for the victor to celebrate his achievements. Julian Weber, the impressive Javelin athlete, ran across Zurich’s Sechseläutenplatz square stadium and took a photo of himself by asking one of his close acquaintances to click it, in the Diamond League Final. He had just crossed the 91-metre mark for the second time in the competition. Soon, after all of the athletes had their customary 5 attempts, Weber was declared the winner. Weber held his arms aloft to celebrate his maiden Diamond League Final victory.
Weber, known as the unlucky one, having missed out on a podium finish in major events, multiple times, finally had a taste of winning a title of significance. But in sport, it is also about the defeated athlete. Neeraj Chopra, India’s ‘golden boy’, had to settle for the second spot with a rather modest throw by his standards – 85.01m. However, the remarkable part of Neeraj is that even on his bad days, he has the mental strength to grind out a way out of a deep abyss.
The former Olympic and the current World Champion couldn’t cross the 85-metre mark on his first two attempts. The next two were fouls. At that moment, he was placed third behind both Weber and Keshorn Walcott. But in his last and final throw, Neeraj just about surpassed 85 metres and secured second place. The resultant outcome was he maintained his proud record of not finishing outside the top two positions in any of the Javelin events since June 2021. An extraordinary accomplishment in itself.
Truth be told, Javelin is a very technical sport. It requires “a synergy of muscles and joints to throw the 800g, 2.5m long spear”. It also forces an athlete to have a feel of the prevailing conditions and tweak his or her technique accordingly. Undoubtedly, Neeraj’s calling card is his mind-cracking consistency.
So, what lies ahead for arguably India’s finest sportsperson? There is an Athletics World Championships on the horizon. And the competition would be fierce. This year, Weber himself holds a 3-1 edge over Neeraj in competitions. He has also breached the 90-metre mark thrice. Arshad Nadeem, who took home the Gold at the Olympics last year, is also set to participate in Tokyo. Anderson Peters, former World Champion, Luiz Mauricio de Silva, who has been in fine fettle this season, will also be in the fray.
Can Neeraj become the double World Champion? On the surface, it looks quite tough, especially considering Weber’s present form. Neeraj’s form, too, has been a touch inconsistent. He did break the 90-metre barrier in Doha. But three of his best throws in three different competitions have been under 87 metres.
Maybe he is getting used to a slightly new style of throwing under his new coach and mentor – Jan Zelezny. Previously, with Neeraj, the Javelin was leaning more leftwards. Nowadays, Neeraj is trying to keep himself more upright, in order to augment power transfer and consistency. Neeraj will be hoping to rectify the small hairline crack that seems to have appeared in his consistency-card.
The line between finishing first and second place is a slim one. Neeraj understands what it takes to become a champion. And there is no better place than the National Stadium in Tokyo, where he clinched the coveted Olympics Gold medal, to rediscover the Neeraj-Zone.
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