Despite directives from the Indian Olympic Association, champion javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra’s attendance at the upcoming National Games looks questionable, as he is on the verge of a groin injury and one season fatigue relief. Olympic gold medalist Chopra achieved another historic feat on Thursday as he became the first Indian to win the prestigious Diamond League Finals title in Zurich, signing the international season with a lively notes. A day later, he was asked about competing in the National Games, which will be held across cities in Gujarat from September 29 to October 12.
“The National Games is coming. I’ve just come back from a groin injury and I probably won’t be able to train for a week or two. So I’m mainly focused on next year,” Chopra said. with reporters.
With the IOA mandating the country’s top athletes to participate in the Olympics, many athletes may have to readjust their training schedules.
The IOA directive comes after Interior Minister Amit Shah launched the mascot and song for the Games, which Sports Minister Anurag Thakur said would be “the biggest and most epic” ever now.
The National Sports Festival is being held after a period of seven years.
A groin problem caused Chopra to skip the Commonwealth Games in July-August, shortly after the World Championships in the US, where he won a silver medal.
But Chopra made a spectacular comeback after a month of convalescence by winning the first leg Lausanne of the Diamond League series on August 26 and qualifying for the Final here.
He became the first Indian to win the Diamond League title in Lausanne with the third-best 89.08m throw of his career.
In Zurich, Chopra started with a foul but jumped to the top with a 88.44m throw – the fourth best of his career – on a second attempt, and it turned out to be it. his winning attempt.
He has 88.00m, 86.11m, 87.00m and 83.60m in his next four throws.
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Olympic silver medalist Jakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic finished second with the longest throw of 86.94m he recorded on his fourth attempt. Germany’s Julian Weber came in third with a best of 83.73m.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and was automatically generated from the syndication feed.)
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