Neeraj Chopra qualifies for Diamond League final after finishing sixth
New Delhi, Aug 28 (IANS) India’s two-time Olympic medallist and javelin legend Neeraj Chopra has qualified for the Diamond League final after securing a sixth-place finish in the overall standings following the end of the Zurich Diamond League.
Chopra finished sixth with 12 points from the league after participating in only two legs and missing three, including the Zurich one.
Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage won the Zurich Diamond League meeting with a throw of 92.07m to win the leg from Anderson Peters, who threw his javelin to 86.93m, while Czech Dawid Wegner finished third with a throw of 85.16m.
Chopra skipped the Zurich Diamond League and participated in only two legs this season. He was seen in action in the Lausanne Diamond League earlier this month, where he finished second after hurling his spear to 88.05m, behind Rumesh.
Chopra earlier participated in the Doha Diamond League and secured a fourth-place finish with a throw of 85.69m in his return from a back injury, which hampered him last year.
Chopra, who made history by becoming the first Indian to win the Olympic gold in the Tokyo Games, also clinched a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games 2026, when he threw his javelin to 85.83m, finishing behind Rumesh.
Chopra opened up about his recent battles with injuries after winning the silver medal at the Glasgow Games.
“There are throws that travel far, and then there are moments that carry the weight of an entire journey,” Chopra wrote in his Instagram post. “The past 10 months have tested me in ways I never expected.”
The Indian star will now have his eyes on the Brussels final, scheduled to take place on September 4 and 5. Chopra won the Diamond League final previously in 2022 with a throw of 88.44m, becoming the first-ever Indian to win a Diamond League title.
He finished second in the 2023 final with a throw of 83.80m, narrowly losing the title to Jakub Vadlejch. He came second in 2024 and second in the 2025 final as well.
–IANS
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