Neeraj Chopra wins Lausanne Diamond League title, finishes 1st with 89.08m throw

Last month, Neeraj Chopra, a 24-year-old Indian athlete, pulled out of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games due to a minor injury he had suffered while winning silver during the World Championships last month. He rested and made a historic comeback after a month.

His 89.08m throw was his third career-best effort, followed by a second throw measuring 85.18m. However, his fourth throw was a foul and he again passed his fifth attempt before coming up with 80.04m in the sixth and last round. And the youngster from Haryana turned out to be the first Indian to win a Diamond League crown.

After the event, Chopra told media persons as quoted by PTI, “I am very happy with my result today. A throw of 89m is a great performance. I am pleased that I am coming back from an injury and tonight was a good indicator that I have recovered well. I was a bit nervous today as earlier I had to skip Commonwealth Games due to injury.”

The 24-year-old-boy, Chopra qualified for the Diamond League Finals in Zurich on September 7 and 8 and with this, he also became the first Indian to do so. Despite the win, he remained in the fourth spot with 15 points — with the addition of eight points on Friday. The top six after the Lausanne’s leg qualify for Zurich Finals.

Meanwhile, Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Jakub Vadlejch finished second with a best throw of 85.88m, followed by USA’s Curtis Thompson was third with a best effort of 83.72m.

In July this year, Chopra had also created a historic moment for India with becoming only the second Indian and first male track and field athlete to win a medal in the World Championships by bagging silver in the javelin throw final.

(With PTI inputs)

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