Neeraj opens up on coaching change after Zelezny’s exit, says he’s back to ‘natural technique’

Doha, June 18 (IANS) Tokyo Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra has shed light on the decision to end his coaching partnership with javelin legend Jan Zelezny, revealing that the move was driven more by practicality than performance.

Speaking during the Wanda Diamond League media interaction in Doha on Thursday, Chopra said that while working with the three-time Olympic champion helped him achieve the long-awaited 90-metre milestone, he eventually decided to return to a setup centred around familiarity, flexibility, and his natural throwing style.

Chopra explained that Zelezny’s coaching methods required long training blocks at a single location, which became increasingly difficult to sustain. Following last year’s World Championships in Tokyo, both agreed it was time to move in a different direction, with the Indian star reuniting with one of his first coaches.

“I worked with Jan Zelezny. He was a great athlete and a really good coach. But we worked on a few things. I’m happy that I broke the 90m barrier with Zelezny. Last year, after Tokyo, because we work on very specific things, I had to stay in one place all season. That was a little bit impossible for me. Then we decided, after Tokyo, okay, maybe I need to work with my ideas,” Chopra said.

“Now I work with the Indian coach. He’s my senior. When I started javelin, I started with him. He knows my story from the last 15-16 years. Now we work on my technique. We are not working on anything specific, very deep, anything. I’m working on my natural technique. I was talking to him, like, okay, let’s start training together. And he knows my training plans and everything. Now we work together, and my physio is always with me. He’s been with me for the last 8-9 years. I have a good team. I feel very good,” he added.

The change marks a return to a more familiar support system, with Chopra placing his trust in a coach who has known him since the early stages of his development. Rather than overhauling his action, the emphasis is now on refining the technique that has already made him an Olympic and world champion while maintaining continuity with the rest of his long-standing support staff.

–IANS

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