Neeraj Chopra continued his impressive run on the international circuit, clinching top honours at the Ostrava Golden Spike meet with a throw of 85.29 metres. The Olympic and World Champion secured the victory in a competition that lacked high-distance fireworks but still saw moments of quality, especially from the Indian javelin star.
Chopra established his dominance early in the competition with what turned out to be the best throw of the evening. While not quite up to his own world-class benchmarks, having hit over 90 metres last month, the 85.29m effort proved enough in a field where very few others came close to threatening that mark.
South Africa’s Douw Smit finished second with a respectable 84.12m, while Grenada’s Anderson Peters, a two-time World Champion, took third place with 83.63m. None of the athletes were able to breach the 86-metre mark, making Chopra’s performance the standout of the night despite his final throw falling well below 80 metres due to a foul.
Heading into the final round, Chopra remained in pole position with his 85.29m, and although there was anticipation for a possible improvement, his last attempt turned out to be anticlimactic. Nonetheless, the competition had already been effectively sealed in his favour much before that.
Chopra's next focus
Chopra, who has shown remarkable consistency this season, now turns his focus to his next outing – the much-anticipated Neeraj Chopra Classic in Bengaluru on July 5. The event will feature several top-tier throwers, including Anderson Peters and Germany’s Thomas Röhler, making it a highly anticipated clash on Indian soil.
Recently, Chopra won the Paris Diamond League earlier in the month. Ahead of that, he was leading in the Doha Diamond League, but in the final round, he suffered a defeat to Julian Weber, who also hit over the 90-metre mark.