Neeraj Chopra’s last appearance came at the World Athletics Championships last September in Tokyo where he had an underwhelming performance as he finished 8th with a best throw of 84.03 meters
Published: June 18, 2026, 7:36 PM IST
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Javelin thrower and Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra greets as he enters the podium to receive the award after winning the men’s javelin final during the Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025, at Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday, July 5, 2025. (Photo: IANS)
India’s golden boy Neeraj Chopra is all set to be in action tomorrow for the first time this season when he takes the field at the Qatar Sports Club arena for the Doha Diamond League. The Indian Javelin star, who was initially expected to not feature in the meet due to an injury, has been cleared to participate in what will be his first major competition in 9 months.
Neeraj Chopra’s last appearance came at the World Athletics Championships last September in Tokyo where he had an underwhelming performance as he finished 8th with a best throw of 84.03 meters. He took part in the World Championships without recovering fully from a back injury that well and truly hindered his performance.
Keshorn Walcott, Anderson Peters and Curtis Thompson had finished on the podium with best throws of 88.16, 87.38 and 86.67 meters respectively. Despite Neeraj Chopra’s disappointing performance, India had a representation in the top 5 in the form of Sachin Yadav who finished 4th with a best of 86.27 meters.
Ahead of his first appearance since the World Championships, Neeraj himself admitted that playing with a back injury was a bad decision but since it was the calendar year’s last competition, the 2-time Olympic medallist wanted to push through.
“I had some injury last year before Tokyo World Championship. We work a lot and also competed in Tokyo, but I don’t think that was a good decision because I already know that I have some problem. But that was the last competition (of 2025), so I decided to compete there,” Neeraj said ahead of the Doha Diamond League.
The 28-year-old, who now trains under Jaiveer Chaudhary after splitting with Jan Zelezny earlier this year, also dropped a major update on his current fitness. “I feel really good and fit, let’s see tomorrow,” Neeraj added.
It was in the same competition last year in May that Neeraj Chopra was finally able to breach the 90 meter mark under Zelezny’s mentorship but he believes it still wasn’t his best performance technically. He was also apprehensive about his performances in the finals of major competitions.
In his own words, Neeraj stated that he likes the way he performs during qualification matches, be it for the Olympics or the World Championships, as he tends to stay calm and relaxed to focus on his technique. However, during major finals or medal matches, Neeraj only focusses on going hard and aggressive.
“I really like my qualification round throws in Olympics or World Championships as they are technically better, because I feel really relaxed and throw far. But whenever I compete in finals or in main competition, I always try really hard, very aggressive, then I forget my technique,” Neeraj concluded.
When, where and how to watch Neeraj Chopra at Doha Diamond League?
The 2020 Tokyo Olympic gold and 2024 Paris silver medallist will be in action at the Doha Diamond League from 11:14PM (IST) onwards. The competition can be live streamed on the competition’s official YouTube channel.
