Neeraj Chopra became the first Indian to win gold at the World Athletics Championships by defeating Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem in a melee.   

The golden boy of Indian athletics, Neeraj Chopra, is now a world champion. The 25-year-old from Khandra, Haryana created history late on Sunday at the Budapest Athletics Center when his javelin soared and landed at a distance of 88.17 meters in his second attempt. He is now the first Indian to win a gold medal at the World Athletics Championships. Having already won as an Olympic champion, Chopra has now won the only major competition he has yet to win.

To add to the joy, India’s Kishore Jena finished fifth with a personal best throw of 84.77, while India’s number 3 DP Manu finished sixth with a best effort of 84.14m. Chopra has an Asian Games gold medal, a Commonwealth Games gold, a Diamond League title, an Asian Championship gold and an Under-20 World Championship. Chopra’s trophy cabinet now also has World Cup gold on display.

Going into the World Cup final, Chopra was always the favourite. In the qualifying round, the Tokyo Olympic champion threw his season’s best effort of 88.77 meters to reach the final with just one throw. The qualification limit for the Paris Olympics in 2024 is 85.50 meters. With this single throw, Chopra also qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics.