"Her mindset appeared to be very strong": Chopra hails Manu Bhaker

Paris silver medal-winning javelin superstar Chopra keen to face international stars on home turf

Star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra hoped to compete with other prominent international names in India sooner than later following his silver medal-winning effort in the Paris Olympics. Chopra bagged the silver at the Paris showpiece with a throw of 89.45m behind Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, who hurled the javelin to 92.97m, an Olympic record.

Anderson Peters of Grenada came third with a throw of 88.54m among the field that included some high-profile javelin throwers like Julian Webber, Jakub Vadlejch and Julius Yego. “It’s a dream of mine to compete with other international stars in India. Hopefully, there will be an international competition soon in India and I can do that,” Chopra said during an interactive session with fans organised by the Olympics.com

Fresh guard

But before that, Chopra, whose silver was his second successive Olympics medal after the gold in Tokyo, said he wanted to work on certain areas of his game. “I am entering a new season now. So, I don’t have that much time to change training methods or technique. But I hope to improve upon a couple of areas, especially the line of the javelin. You know, the correct angle of throwing so that I get more power in my throw. I will certainly work on it,” he said.

Also Read: Paris Olympics 2024: India's highs, lows and poor fours!

Tough conditions

Chopra said he wanted to give it all in the Paris Games final despite being below his best physically. “The conditions were tough. When Arshad made that throw, I was able to hit my season’s best because the thought was set in my mind that I had to give my best throw as the competition had already become very tough.”

Mothers of Chopra and Nadeem had taken the social media by storm as they showered affection on each other’s son. Chopra said his mother always spoke from her heart as she to date remained a simple rural soul. “My mother—she always stayed in a village before and after her marriage. She is not familiar with social media and things like that. She often speaks from her heart. But she understands what families of athletes, even from different countries, feel towards them.”

Neeraj impressed with Manu Bhaker’s mindset

Neeraj Chopra lauded shooter Manu Bhaker for showing perseverance to grab two bronze medals in the Paris Games after experiencing utter disappointment in the Tokyo edition. “The way Manu Bhaker prepared her mind and came from her Tokyo setback is impressive. Her mindset appeared to be very strong this time while taking part in back-to-back competitions. I hope Manu will play in a lot more competitions, bring a lot more medals for the country and change the colour of the medal too,” he said. Chopra, 26, also hailed Indian hockey team’s goalkeeper PR Sreejesh, who retired from top-level competition with a bronze at Paris. “Sreejesh is a very relaxed and funny person. He motivates younger players a lot,” he said.

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