Indian world champion and Olympic javelin medalist Neeraj Chopra acknowledged that while there will also be some focus on Arshad Nadeem, his Pakistani arch-rival, during the men’s javelin final, his main objective is to compete with himself and improve his technique and launch. in the title event. Neeraj, who had recently won India’s first World Athletics Championships gold, will begin his Asian Games campaign in Hangzhou on October 4 with the men’s javelin throw final. Arshad will be a rival to watch out for during the final.
“Whenever Arshad has played with me, I have won. But the focus is always on doing my best, not on who is playing against me. In athletics, you compete with yourself and strive to do your best. Yes, There is some concentration. “In the Asian Games there are no European athletes, but my fight is against myself, I have to improve my technique and my throw. Rest, we’ll see,” Neeraj told the media in Hangzhou.
Head to head, both athletes have faced each other in nine international events, seven times at the senior level and twice at the junior level, according to Olympics.com.
The first meeting between these two athletes was at the 2016 South Asian Games in Guwahati, where Neeraj bagged the gold and Nadeem took home the bronze. As of now, Neeraj has a 9-0 lead over Nadeem.
Even though Neeraj dominates the overall numbers, Arshad is closing in on the Indian ace’s performances since 2018 and could be a big threat to Neeraj’s supremacy. Pakistan’s Arshad has an edge over Neeraj in terms of personal best throws, touching the mark of 90.18 during the CWG 2022, where he won gold. With this effort he surpassed the then world champion, Anderson Peters of Granada. Neeraj had missed the event due to an injury. It was only the second time, after Chinese Taipei’s Chao-Tsun Cheng’s 91.26m throw at the 2017 World Underside, that a South Asian athlete touched the 90m mark.
However, Neeraj is yet to reach this much talked about 90m mark, and his personal best of 89.94m at the 2022 Stockholm Diamond League in Sweden is also a national record.
Talking about the launch of the 90m mark, Neeraj said that he himself is looking forward to it but is in no hurry to do it.
“I am very close to achieving it. I want to make that pitch myself. I believe in the process. When it happens, it will happen. I am not in a hurry. I am happy with my consistent performances, this is my main focus,” Neeraj said.
Neeraj said that he likes the fact that he has been so consistent over the last four years and added that he aspires to be consistent not only on the field but also in training.
“It’s not about being consistent in throwing, but also in training. Keep training well and working on your technique. This leads to improvement. Last year I made two national records, it was nice. I made improvements. This year I felt good “But the injuries proved to be a temporary hurdle. It feels good to be consistent,” Neeraj said.
Neeraj has won it all, gold medals in the World Championships, Olympic Games, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and also the Diamond League title.
Arriving in Hangzhou this year after having started his journey at the 2018 Asian Games, Neeraj said: “It feels very good (to have won it all). The atmosphere is nice. I meet athletes from other players. It feels good to meet them “In 2018, I won gold in my first Asian Games. I was just starting out then. The final is on October 4 and I hope to do well.”
Talking about having won it all, Neeraj said that he loves hearing it from athletes and that they all believe that they can compete and win against the best.
“I love hearing from athletes who believe that they can win too. My message was that we too can win and compete with the best athletes in Europe and the United States (win the Olympic medal) which we always consider difficult. You can see the performance of athletes, they are doing very well. The central government, their TOPS programme, the SAI, the federation, etc., are working well for us. I would like to thank the private sponsors. It is the effort of all those who sports and Indian athletics are achieving. up.”
The star javelin thrower said he loves the feeling of big stadiums and big audiences.
“I like it when the stadiums are big and have a lot of people. I have experienced everything. I have done some of my best performances in small stadiums and others in big ones. My experience at the World Championship was pleasant, the stadium was full. Now it would also be fantastic here,” Neeraj said.
Asked about the secret of his consistency, Neeraj said: “Everyone’s support is a great cause. I have learned from all the competitions I have played in. Self-confidence is important. When I was little, I used to watch videos of bowlers internationals in the hope of meeting them or playing with them. When you work with passion, your dreams come true. I always had a passion for javelin and dreamed of playing with these athletes. Passion also helps you progress,” Neeraj explained.
Neeraj said the focus is always on getting the first delivery right as it boosts confidence and creates pressure on the opponents.
“But in the previous World Championship I couldn’t make good throws and even this year I committed a foul. One must stay motivated until the last throw because the game can change at any time,” he said.
On a final note, Neeraj said he practiced a little at the stadium.
“I hope it doesn’t rain in the final,” he concluded.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated channel.)
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