'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Neeraj Chopra’s journey - from humble beginnings in Khandra Village in Haryana’s Panipat district to becoming the poster boy of Indian Javelin - has been nothing short of spectacular.
Chopra qualified for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics with an 87.86m throw at the Athletics Central North East meet. The event was conducted at the Kenneth McArthur Stadium in South Africa last year.
The star javelin thrower is best known for clinching a gold medal at the 2018 Asian Games with a throw of 88.06m. The Panipat-born athlete also holds the national record with a throw of 88.07m, which was set during the Indian Grand Prix in Patiala.
The 23-year-old also bagged two prominent golds - one at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and the other at the 2017 Asian Championships in Bhubaneswar.
However, post 2018 Asiad, Neeraj Chopra battled an elbow injury for almost a year. He recovered well, taking care of his training regimen and went on to win the coveted Olympic quota in January 2020. The youngster is one of India's best medal hopefuls at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Neeraj Chopra failed to qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics but the Indian stalwart will be looking to come out all guns blazing during the 2021 edition of the global event. However, he is set to face stiff competition.
In this article, we analyze five of Neeraj Chopra's biggest competitors at the Tokyo Olympics.
#1 Magnus Kirt - Estonia
Estonian athlete Magnus Kirt will be one of Neeraj Chopra's biggest competitors in Tokyo. The 31-year-old has a personal best throw of 90.61m. This is also an Estonian record.
His biggest achievements are winning a Bronze medal at the 2018 European Championships in Berlin and an impressive Silver at the 2019 World Championships in Doha.
Kirt has been a Javelin thrower on the rise in recent times. He has shown consistent improvement in his throws. From a best of 84.47m in 2016 to breaching the 90m mark in 2019, Magnus is undoubtedly a medal contender at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
#2 Johannes Vetter - Germany
Johannes Vetter is one of the best Javelin throwers of the modern day. The 28-year-old from Germany boasts a phenomenal personal best of 97.76m. It is also the German record. He is placed second on the all-time top list of javelin throwers (the best throw being 98.48 - recorded by Jan Zelezny of the Czech Republic way back in 1996).
Vetter also bagged gold at the World Championships in 2017 and clinched a Bronze at the 2019 edition in Doha. The German athlete will certainly be one of the javelin throwers to watch out for at the Olympics alongside Neeraj Chopra.
#3 Andreas Hofmann - Germany
Another German javelin thrower giving stiff competition to Indian star Neeraj Chopra will be Andreas Hofmann. The Heidelberg-born javelin thrower came into the limelight when he bagged the gold medal at the European Junior Championships in 2009.
The 29-year-old has a personal best of 92.06m. He has bagged two notable silver medals in his career - the first at the Summer Universiade in 2017 with a throw of 91.07m and the second at the 2018 European Championships in Berlin with a throw of 87.60m.
#4 Anderson Peters - Grenada
Grenadian javelin thrower Anderson Peters is the holding World Champion in Men's javelin. The 23-year-old has a knack for winning medals at major events. He set the Games Record at the 2019 Pan American Games en route to the gold medal with a throw of 87.31m. This throw is also his personal best.
At the 2019 World Championships in Athletics, Peters claimed the yellow metal with a throw of 86.89 m. The Grenadian is known to come to the party at major events and will be oozing with confidence heading into the Olympics. He has the World Champion tag, and it will be interesting to see how he fares at his maiden Summer Olympics.
#5 Thomas Rohler - Germany
Thomas Rohler is another German who will be amongst Neeraj Chopra's biggest rivals at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. He is the holding Olympic champion. The ace javelin thrower bagged gold in some style at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games. He won the coveted medal with a best throw of 90.30m in the Men's Javelin final, while Julius Yego of Kenya claimed silver with a throw of 88.24m.
In 2017, Rohler threw a personal best of 93.90m. This puts him handsomely in third place on the all-time top javelin throwers list. 2018 was a phenomenal year for the German as he bagged two gold medals at major events - one at the European Championships in Berlin and the other at the Continental Cup in Ostrava. Thomas will be eyeing his second Olympic gold in Tokyo.
India has been waiting for an athletics medal at the Olympics for a long time. As long as Neeraj Chopra keeps sweating it out to breach that 90m mark, India can keep their hopes high. The excitement is certainly building up as the date for departure to Tokyo approaches.
The big question is - will Neeraj Chopra finally break the deadlock and help India win an Olympic medal in athletics?
