Neeraj Chopra, 26, claimed his first gold medal in the Paavo Nurmi Games on Tuesday.
Neeraj Chopra, an Indian javelin thrower, has talked about how his season has been hampered by an adductor ache. He plans to see “different doctors” to solve the bothersome problem after the Olympics in Paris. Chopra made his competition comeback after a month-long hiatus, winning his first gold medal at the Paavo Nurmi Games here on Tuesday with a performance of 85.97 meters on his third try. The 26-year-old, who made history by becoming the first Indian to win a medal in track and field at the Olympics in Tokyo, withdrew as a precaution from last month’s Ostrava Golden Spike after experiencing pain in his adductor, a set of muscles found in the inner thighs.
While windy and a touch chilly, the weather was nice today. Chopra remarked following the victory, “But now that I could complete all six throws, I am happy with my adductor.”
“Every year I have some problems with my adductor, maybe after the Olympics I am going to talk to different doctors.” Still, Chopra stated that he hoped to participate in more tournaments this year.
His best throw of 88.36 meters, which came in second place at the Doha Diamond League in May, was his ninth-highest record of the season.
The next event he competed in was the National Federation Cup Senior Athletics Championships in Bhubaneswar, where he won the gold medal with a mediocre time of 82.27 meters.
“Initially I wanted to compete more this season, but it was not possible due to my niggles,” he explained.
Next up for Chopra is the Paris Diamond League on July 7, which comes right after the Paavo Nurmi Games.
In the run-up to the Paris Olympics, Chopra, coach Klaus Bartonietz, and physiotherapist Ishaan Marwaha will be training in three different locations throughout Europe.
Kuortane, Finland, is where the 26-year-old started his training. Now, he’s going to Germany, to Saarbrucken.
Chopra will begin the last round of his preparation at the Gloria Sports Arena in Turkiye, where he will be based until July 28th, following his just over two-week stay in Germany.
I am going to Saarbrücken, Germany, and possibly Turkey right before the Olympics. I am from Kuortane.
While I exercise mostly by myself with my coach and physiotherapist, we occasionally switch with other coaches, such as Jan Zelezny.
“I will try to stay healthy in the next weeks, because then I will throw my best throws,” he added.
