PARIS: It was hot and humid at the Stade de France on Thursday night. The air was still, and heavy with anticipation. Not the best of conditions for an athlete to give his best. But that would have been the last thing on Neeraj Chopra‘s mind.
He came here with the tag of the defending javelin throw champion. “It gives you motivation. Helps you focus better on your performance.” Just two days ago, Chopra got his second-best throw ever at this arena, 89.94m, during the qualification. “Don’t go by this throw. Final alag cheez hai (final is a different thing),” he had said.
It was different. Very different. The Indian, who had topped the qualifications, started with a foul. So did Pakistan‘s Arshad Nadeem, Neeraj’s challenger and a friend on the circuit. But that was not a worry for these two sub-continental heroes.
They went top of the chart on their second try. Nadeem set an Olympic record with a huge throw of 92.97m. It was a sensational throw, almost unbelievable. The javelin kept soaring and soaring before it fell to a huge roar in the stadium. The earlier record stood at 90.57m. He had just gone way, way ahead of the others.
Neeraj managed 89.45m on his second try to be second on the list, 3.52m behind the Pakistani. He indicated with his right hand that it was not where he wanted to be at. There was a lot of catching up to do, for him and the others.
Nadeem’s third throw was around 88m. He looked satisfied as he pumped his fist. He knew he had done his best. Neeraj fouled his third throw. It was a weak one anyway. The Indian usually gets his best throws on his initial tries. Three gone. So, could he improve now? Had Nadeem’s throw put extra pressure on him?
The other challengers – Anderson Peters of Grenada, Jakub Vadlejch of Czech Republic, Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago and Germany’s Julien Weber – were just behind Neeraj after four attempts. In the third spot was Vadlejch with 88.5m.
The script could still change. The gold looked to have been secured by the Pakistani in his safe vault. The competition was in his pocket. It was about the other two medals.
Neeraj fouled his fourth and fifth throws too. Out of five attempts, he had managed just one valid throw. It was very uncharacteristic. He was still second on the list, but there was a throw left and he could be upstaged.
At this stage, it was Pakistan gold, India silver. Not many would have predicted this before the event. Nadeem is a World Championship silver medallist and has crossed the 90m-mark often in his career. He had chosen this venue, this stage to get a throw he would have often dreamed about.
Neeraj fouled his sixth and final throw too. He raised his hands to thank the crowd. Nadeem then went for his final throw. It again went like the first one, just short at 91.79m. He then went down on his knees to thank God.
Chopra was looking to become the fifth athlete in the history of the Games to defend the men’s javelin throw Olympic title. He failed to do that but with the silver here, he has gone a step ahead of other Indian Olympians.
