It is not easy being Neeraj Chopra. Do the things he does. Win multiple medals at the world stage and yet feel the same hunger when he gets ready for the next competition. To be the polestar can’t be easy and yet he has conducted himself with utmost maturity and presided over a revolution of sorts winning medals at every event he has participated in.
Doha was no different. It was much like Tokyo where he did it with his second throw. Here it was his first. 88.67 and Neeraj had jumped to the top of the pile in a flash. And if you see the throw, it proves why he is a special athlete. As he hurled the javelin and the camera caught him up close, he did not seem happy. It was only after the distance flashed on the screen and it was the world lead did he break into a smile. Yes Jakub Vadlejch came close twice with throws of 88.63 and 88.47 but it wasn’t to be. Neeraj held on for a first in the history of Indian sport. Anderson Peters, who beat Neeraj at the Eugene World Championships last year, finished third.
What works for Neeraj or has worked so far? How does he keep himself rooted despite all the adulation around him? How is he dealing with the mantle of India’s new sporting superstar? And can he break the 90 meter mark this season?
‘Is saal yeh 90 meter wala saval khatam kar denge. Maine bahut baar yeh saval suna hai aur mujhe lagta hai ki kuch samay mein yeh saval khatam ho jayga”, he had said to us a month back. At Doha he said the venue is known for 90 meter throws.
Clearly the 90 meter mark is playing in his mind. And he has come close quite a few times already. Sooner than later he will get past it for he has trained for it and is ready.
With Neeraj it is confidence. A silent determination knowing full well what he is saying and what he is capable of.
“Never do I approach a competition thinking I am Neeraj, Olympic gold medallist. All I do is give my 100 percent and prepare the best I can”, said Chopra when asked how he has readied himself mentally.
2022 and 2023, it can be argued, will be more difficult for him in comparison to 2021. In Tokyo he was a contender. More for a medal than the gold. India would have been happy if he made the podium and few would have hoped for the gold. Post Tokyo, things were dramatically different.
For a 24 year old, it can’t be easy. All of us in the media want our exclusives and yet want to see him train with single minded focus. To carve out a balance was his biggest challenge and that’s where Neeraj has stood out. He fulfilled the obligations of being Neeraj for weeks and months and then managed to switch off completely. While we did see the occasional post on social media, his team, which is so very critical to success in elite sport, made sure he could just focus on training with singular focus.
Many congratulations #NeerajChopra on winning the Doha Diamond League.
His first throw of 88.67 gets him this feat which is currently the World Lead in 2023.
This is what he told us yesterday.@Neeraj_chopra1 @g_rajaraman @Diamond_League @dldoha #DiamondLeague #DohaDL pic.twitter.com/W45mYuu0Oj
— RevSportz (@RevSportz) May 5, 2023
Yes he hasn’t thrown 90 meters yet. It has become an obsession of sorts with him by his own admission. More with us in India. And may be that’s why he said what he said. It is time to finish the 90 meter debate once and for all. He knows he isn’t there yet despite winning all that there is to win. He stills wants a World Championship gold and may be another in Paris 2024. Success hasn’t changed him and that perhaps is the most important reason behind his success. Doha is proof. Clearly there are many more to come.