Silver for ‘Golden Boy’ Neeraj; Pakistan’s Nadeem smashes Olympic record for gold

Defending champion Neeraj Chopra made history as the first Indian track-and-field athlete to win two successive Olympic medals with a silver in men’s javelin throw. However, the spotlight was on Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, who set a new Olympic record to clinch the gold, marking Pakistan’s first individual gold at the Olympics. Nadeem’s remarkable throw of 92.97m in his second attempt set a high bar for the competition, ultimately securing his victory.

In contrast, Chopra, under pressure, managed just one legitimate throw of 89.45m in the second round, which earned him the silver. Chopra expressed that his performance was impacted by his injury (adductor niggle) and stated, “Whenever I throw, 60-70 percent focus is on injury. My runway was not good today, my speed was also low.” He added that his performance was the best given his circumstances and mentioned that he still has a lot more to achieve.

Notably, Chopra is now the third Indian and the first in track and field to win back-to-back individual Olympic medals, joining the ranks of wrestler Sushil Kumar (2008 and 2012) and shuttler PV Sindhu (2016 and 2021). Arshad Nadeem’s throw also broke the earlier Olympic record of 90.57m held by Andreas Thorkildsen of Norway since the 2008 Beijing Games. The event also witnessed strong performances by other athletes, with seven of them surpassing the 86m mark.

Nadeem’s stunning victory over Chopra marked a significant development in their rivalry, with Nadeem avenging his loss to Chopra in the 2023 Budapest World Championships. Nadeem’s impressive 90m+ throw was not a first, as he had previously thrown 90.18m to win gold in the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games. It is evident that both Neeraj Chopra and Arshad Nadeem have had a competitive rivalry, with Nadeem coming out on top this time.