Paris 2024: Neeraj Chopra Strikes Gold at Paavo Nurmi Games, Gears Up to Defend Olympic Title

New Delhi: Neeraj Chopra secured gold medal in men’s javelin throw at Paavo Nurmi Games, a World Atheletice Continental Tour (Gold level) event, with 85.97m in Turku, Finland on Tuesday.

Olympic Gold Medalist and World Champion Neeraj Chopra kicked off the Paavo Nurmi Games with a solid throw of 83.62m. However, local favorite Oliver Helander briefly overtook him with an impressive second-round throw of 83.96m, while Chopra managed 83.45m.

Undeterred, Neeraj reclaimed the lead in spectacular fashion with a third-round throw of 85.97m, marking his best performance of the day. He continued his impressive form with subsequent throws of 82.21m, a foul, and 82.97m, cementing his dominance and readiness to defend his Olympic title.

Finland’s Toni Keranen clinched silver with a new personal best throw of 84.19m while Helander managed to secure bronze medal for himself with 83.96m. Lassi Etelatalo, another local athlete, finished last with 79.35m.

former world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada finished fourth with 82.58m while former Olympic champion Keshorn Walcott settled for sixth spot with 81.93m.

Moldova’s Andrian Mardare took fifth place with 82.19m. Max Dehning, the 19-year-old German who produced a world-leading throw of 90.20m in February, could not cross the 80m mark as he finished seventh with 79.84m.

Neeraj marked his third event of the season. The world champion finished second at the Diamond League meeting in Doha with a great throw of 88.36m. Neeraj also participated in his first domestic competition since winning the gold medal at Tokyo Olympics as he ended up claiming the top spot at the Federation Cup in Bhubaneshwar last month with a throw of 82.27m.

Neeraj was supposed to participate in the Ostrava Golden Spike 2024 but pulled out of the competition as a precautionary measure as he was facing problems with his adductor muscles.

The star javelin thrower, has been granted an exemption by the Athletics Federation of India from competing in the National Inter-State Meet in Panchkula from June 27 to 30. Fans can look forward to his next appearance at the prestigious Diamond League meeting in Paris on July 7, where he is set to showcase his exceptional talent once again.