New Delhi: Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra won the elusive gold medal in men’s javelin throw by finishing in the top spot at the Paavo Nurmi Games 2024 in Turku, Finland on Tuesday, June 18. Neeraj was arguably the most consistent thrower of the night and bagged the gold medal with his best throw of 85.97m. Home favourite Toni Keranen finished second to clinch the silver medal with a throw of 84.19m.
Neeraj returned to action for the first time since opting for a precautionary break earlier this year due to an adductor issue. The Olympic champion was the lone Indian in an eight-man field comprising the likes of Anderon Peters, local favourite Helander and Max Dehning among others. Neeraj was expected fierce competition from teenage sensation Dehning, who is the youngest to have breached the 90m mark in men’s javelin.
The 19-year-old from Germany recorded a throw of 90.20m at the Winter Throwing Championships in Halle. However, Dehning failed to cross the 80m mark in Turku on Tuesday and failed to upstage Neeraj, who was comfortably the best thrower on the night. Neeraj got off to a patchy start but ensured the top spot with his best throw of 85.97m.
Neeraj started with a throw of 83.62m in his first attempt but failed to better it in his second attempt as he could only manage 83.45m. The Indian ace found himself behind local lad Olivier Helander before his third attempt as the Finnish thrower went on top with a throw of 83.96m in his second attempt. However, it was a brief lead for him as Neeraj bounced back with an 85.97m throw in his third attempt which was enough for him to seal the top spot.
Watch Neeraj Chopra’s gold-winning throw at Paavo Nurmi Games 2024:
8️⃣5️⃣.9️⃣7️⃣| And Neeraj is Back in LEAD
— IndiaSportsHub (@IndiaSportsHub) June 18, 2024
Neeraj produced a throw of 82.21m in his fourth attempt before registering a foul on his final fifth attempt. It was far from a dominant performance from the Olympic champion, who is gearing up to defend his title in Paris later this year but it didn’t take a herculean effort from the Indian star to finish on top of the standings.
While Keranen finished second with his best throw of 84.19m, Helander took the third spot with his best throw of 83.96m. Two-time world champion Anderson Peters finished 4th with the best throw of 82.58m. German wonderboy Dehning couldn’t cross the 80m mark and had to settle for the seventh spot with the best effort of 79.84m.
It was Neeraj’s only second appearance at the Paavo Nurmi Games. He first took part in the competition in 2022 when he produced an impressive throw of 89.30m to break his own national record. Neeraj barely missed the elusive 90m mark at the time, but two years down the line he is yet to hit the 90m mark with Paris Olympics just days away.
Olympic champion Neeraj Chapra won the elusive gold medal at the Paavo Nurmi Games 2024 in Finland with the best throw of 85.97m. Chopra returned to action after a short break owing to an adductor issue. Other Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
