Neeraj Chopra secured his spot in the Diamond League final, which is scheduled for September 13 and 14 in Brussels. Neeraj finished the Zurich Diamond League in fourth place with 14 points. Anderson Peters of Grenada came in first place with 29 points, followed by Julian Webber of Germany in second place with 21 points.
Neeraj Chopra, the two-time Olympic javelin throw champion from India, qualified for this month’s Diamond League season finale after placing fourth overall following the competition’s 14 series meetings worldwide. The two-day event on September 14 and 15 in Brussels will serve as the season finale. Chopra’s two second-place finishes in the one-day meets in Lausanne and Doha gave him 14 points. He did not attend Thursday’s final series match in Zurich.The 26-year-old sits two points behind Jakub Vadlech of the Czech Republic. With 29 and 21 points, respectively, German sensation Julian Weber and Grenada’s Anderson Peters hold the top two positions. Peters had won the meet in Zurich over Weber.
Chopra, who added a silver medal to his collection in the Paris edition last month after winning gold in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has been having trouble staying healthy this season.
The Haryana boy has mentioned that he has been dealing with a groin problem since before the Olympics, which has prevented him from reaching the 90-meter mark.In the Lausanne Diamond Leg, Peters, with a throw of 90.61 meters, defeated the Indian in second place. Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan won the gold medal in the Olympics in Paris with a tremendous 92.97-meter throw.
His objectives for this year and the next were revealed last month. “First goal, go to the doctor and make my groin 100% fit and also I will be technically better and try to throw far again,” he had stated.
In the winner-take-all finale held in Eugene, USA, last year, Chopra finished second behind Vadlejch, having won the Lausanne leg in 2022 and 2023.
A coveted “Diamond Trophy,” USD 30,000 in prize money, and a wild card into the World Athletics Championships are given to the winners of the Diamond League season finale.
