Picture Credit: Twitter
Ever since Neeraj Chopra won a gold medal at Tokyo Olympics, he has been out of action due to multiple reasons. Either he was at felicitation ceremonies or was busy in promotional activities. This no-action for ten months did a lot of damage to Chopra’s fitness as he put on 14kg. Nonetheless, the javelin thrower redeemed himself with six months of rigorous training in Chula Vista, Turkey and then Finland.
The golden boy is now back in action and he has started the 2022 season in some style. The 24-year-old featured in two events in Finland where he won a silver and a gold medal. While Chopra came second in the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku with a big national record throw of 89.30m, he won his event at Kuortane Games with a creditable 86.60m throw.
Now with the man with the aim of breaching the 90-meter mark steaming hot, here is a look at where is Chopra due to perform in the next few weeks.
Stockholm Diamond League
Although Neeraj Chopra has got back in action, his real test starts with the Stockholm Diamond League getting underway on 30 June. In 2022, there are 13 Diamond League tournaments, with five featuring the men's javelin event. The one hosted by Doha has already taken place in May, and there are four more to go – in Stockholm, Silesia, Monaco, and Lausanne. Having participated in the seasons before, Neeraj is yet to grab a medal at the event.
Athletics World Championships
The biggest challenge for 24-year-old Chopra will be the World Championships in July. After the javelin thrower gets done with the Stockholm Diamond League he will fly to the USA for the Athletics World Championships that will run from 15 to 24 July. Chopra's previous appearance at the World Championships, in London in 2017, ended in disappointment as he missed out on the final by 74cm.
Right after the World Championships, the next assignment for Chopra will be the 2022 Commonwealth Games that take place in Birmingham from 28 July to 8 August. In the last edition of the quadrennial event, Chopra had finished fourth overall and had recorded a throw of 82.42m.