Neeraj Chopra didn’t even give a look.
The moment he dropped the javelin, he was so sure it would at least be his personal best that he turned to his coaches, and raised his arms to celebrate. But Chopra was wrong. It was not his personal best. The throw, which traveled 87.58 metres, made him an Olympic champion.
For over 100 years, Indian athletics has only been about stories of near-misses, broken dreams and enduring heartbreaks. When the time finally came – at 9.07 p.m. at the National Stadium in Tokyo – the game won the gold medal.
Chopra’s medal, which came a little over an hour after wrestler Bajrang Punia won bronze in the 65kg weight category, also ensured that India’s Olympic sojourn ended on a high.
Tokyo 2020 will go down as the country’s most successful campaign, with a total of seven medals – 1 gold, 2 silver and 4 bronze.
India’s first javelin gold will last long after Abhinav Bindra became Olympic champion at the 2008 Beijing Games.
Chopra didn’t just finish at the top of the podium on Saturday night. He did it so effortlessly, with so much dominance that it was so uncharacteristically Indian, especially in a sport like athletics where the country’s athletes have performed notoriously poorly.
It was poetic in a way that the morning Chopra won the elusive medal, an Indian athlete collapsed from a podium finish in golf. Aditi Ashok showed incredible grit and focus to stay in contention till the end but finished fourth, joining the heart-breaking club of some of the country’s most illustrious athletes.
Chopra dedicated his medal to all but first and foremost Milkha Singh, who passed away recently. COVID-19 related complications.
“First of all, I dedicate my gold medal to Milkha Singh sir. He yearned to see this day and I hope he is watching it from heaven,” said Chopra. “Then, many others including PT Usha ma’am who came close. This medal is also for all of them.”
Not the greatest or greatest of throwers, he relied on speed to generate power in his throws. Second on the starting list for the final, he laid down the gauntlet in difficult terrain with a mammoth throw of 87.03m.
“That was our strategy,” said their coach Klaus Bartonitz. We wanted to put direct pressure on the rest of the field and the only way to do that was to throw big.”
It was one of those rare days when everything aligns perfectly for Chopra. He looked calm and relaxed, took a sip of an energy drink just before it was his turn and announced his intention. With the second throw, he went on to record 87.58 metres.
Chopra being far off the field was not the biggest surprise. He did the same during the qualifying rounds, but with the weather clear but equally humid on Saturday, it was expected that others, including the sport’s current biggest star Johannes Wetter, would step up their game.
The waiters were the outright favorites to win the gold, recording throws of more than 90 meters this year for fun. But he was having trouble with his technique and complained about the track being slippery.
The waiters did not look comfortable even during the final, struggled to get proper grip on the surface and slipped several times. After his first attempt of 82.52 metres, he twisted his ankle and slipped during his next throw. Like the second, his third throw was also a foul.
With the world’s best javelin thrower off the field in the past 12 months, others struggled to come close to Chopra’s effort. The next best throw, by Czech Republic’s Jakob Vadléj, was almost a meter shorter and was 2.14m behind the bronze medalist, Viteslav Vesli, the Indian.
“The plan was to just go after my personal best. I knew that if I match him, I will end up on the podium,” said Chopra.
He also finished on top, on the podium. When she was presented the medal, Chopra held it firmly in a kiss and put it in her neck. And as soon as the national anthem was played in this huge stadium, they shed tears. The only time he seemed exaggerated was in the night.
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