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Neeraj Chopra finishes 2nd with a throw of 83.80m at the Diamond League Final held in Eugene. The defending champion was unable to better his fierce rival Jakub Vadlejch whose throw of 84.24m secured him the title. Neeraj’s throw fell just 44cm short of the top position but was far from his own season best of 88.77m.
Neeraj started the competition with a No Mark, while his biggest competitor, Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch, took the lead at the end of the first round with a throw of 84.01m. Neeraj quickly shrugged the early lapse off the early setback and climbed to second place with a throw of 83.80 in the second round. At the halfway point, the table remained the same, with Vadlejch in line to win the title, Neeraj Chopra in second, and Finland’s Oliver Helander in third.
In the fourth round, the proceedings began to slow down as the top three all registered fouls. Neeraj's final two throws also felt short of Vadlejch’s first attempt of 84. 01m. He was well off his best, only managing distances of 80.74m and 80.90m in his final two attempts. Jakub Vadlejch, the silver medallist from Tokyo, later celebrated his title by improving his throw and reaching a mark of 84.24m. This was the Czech javelin thrower's third Diamond Title, with his last being in 2018.
Finland’s Oliver Helander finished third, while two-time world champion Anderson Peters finished last. The long season affected all throwers, as no one managed to surpass the 85m mark, with most athletes achieving distances in the high 70s and low 80s.
Javelin Throw was contested in four other meets in the Diamond League this year. Neeraj took part in three of them and won two, namely the Doha and Lausanne legs. He also participated in Zurich, where he finished behind Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch.
In addition to Neeraj Chopra, long jumper Murali Sreeshankar and 3000m steeplechaser Avinash Sable had also qualified for the finals of their respective events but decided to skip the Diamond League Final to focus on preparations for the upcoming Asian Games.
Neeraj Chopra became the only Indian to win a Diamond League Title last year when he won the final with a throw of 88.44m.
The final table of Diamond League Men’s Javelin Throw:
The final standings of the Men's Javelin Diamond League Final were as follows:
1.Jakub Vadlejch(CZE) - 84.24m
2.Neeraj Chopra(IND) - 83.80m
3.Oliver Helander(FIN) - 83.74m
4.Andrian Mardare(MDA) - 81.79m
5.Curtis Thomspon(USA) - 77.01m
6.Anderson Peters(GRN) - 74.71m
