In the ongoing Tokyo Olympics, Neeraj Chopra created history as he bagged India’s first ever javelin throw gold medal. Moreover, he clinched the second ever individual gold medal by an athlete and will be bringing home India’s first gold medal in this edition of Tokyo Olympics. The 23-year-old young man pulled massive upset and threw monstrous throws to disqualify the sporting legend Johannes Vetter.

Contents hide
1. Details
2. The Competition Begins – Neeraj’s First Throw
3. Neeraj’s Javelin Turns into Rocket
4. Johannes Vetter Humbled by Chopra
5. The Third Throw – Competition Heats Up
6. Chopra Minutes Closer to Scripting History
7. Take a Bow Neeraj Chopra, Take a Bow
8. Modi, PT Usha, Sehwag, Abhinav Bindra, All Laud Chopra

Details

The date 7th August 2021 and name Neeraj Chopra will be etched forever in the belly of a medal elusive India.

Neeraj-Chopra-Gold-Medal

Neeraj Chopra with Olympic Gold Medal | Image Credit: Tokyo 2020 (Twitter)

To say that Chopra’s gold medal win is historic is as big of an understatement as saying Olympics is a mere sporting event. Chopra’s gold is India’s first this Olympic season, the first ever for his country in the track and field, and second ever in any individual sport after Abhinav Bindra’s 2008 gold medal.

Want one more interesting statistic? Thanks to Chopra’s monstrous 87.58m throw, the gold that came is India’s 7th medal this Olympics and its richest-ever medal haul so far with 7 medals and counting.

Also Read: Tokyo Olympics 2020: Mirabai Chanu Wins Silver Medal, India’s Medal Hunt Begins

The Competition Begins – Neeraj’s First Throw

Before the glory was about to be written, Neeraj’s first throw became a writing on the wall for what was to come, and a warning for every other competitor to up their game. The 23-year-old looked fearless with seemingly no stress of playing for his country in the final of the biggest sporting event in the world. His first throw saw him floating like a butterfly over the mat and throwing monstrous 87.03 m throw.

Neeraj’s Javelin Turns into Rocket

The second throw by Neeraj was all about his flamboyancy and youthful exuberance. The Panipat- based athlete had an equally brilliant run-up and as the javelin left his hands, he didn’t look behind and raised his hands in celebration. He knew he his attempt was a good one, and it was 0.5m more than the first one. The spear was flung to a crazy 87.58m and the Indian athlete knew he was in solid contention for the ever-elusive gold medal.

Also Read: Chak De! Indian Hockey Team Makes History, Wins Bronze & Ends 41-year Olympic Medal Drought

Johannes Vetter Humbled by Chopra

Meanwhile, Johannes Vetter, the unstoppable force to Neeraj’s immovable object, could only manage a 85.53 in his first attempt. The second throw was all the more disappointing as Vetter-the hot favourite got red-flagged after he slipped and fell. However, Chopra found Julian Weber from Germany throw a 85.03 in his first attempt to keep him on toes.

The Third Throw – Competition Heats Up

In the third throw, all eyes were on Chopra. Could he cross the 90m mark? Well, he couldn’t and could in fact only manage 76.79m. Eventually, one thrower after the other tried to surpass Chopra’s throw mark, but couldn’t. The bigger surprise came in the fact that the world champion Johannes Vetter kept slipping down in the ranking, and eventually couldn’t make it to the final 8 during the final-leg of the competition.

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Chopra Minutes Closer to Scripting History

In the second round, and his fourth throw, Neeraj got his technique messed up and although the javelin went higher, it didn’t cover the usual distance and his throw was disqualified. But the young man was still looking strong as none of the athletes came close to his best 87m+ throw.

Take a Bow Neeraj Chopra, Take a Bow

It was the final attempt for all 8 throwers, and Germany’s Weber threw a 85.15 to end up at 4th. Vítězslav Veselý, thanks to his consistent throws and his final 84.98 throw ended up on the bronze podium while his Czech Republic comrade Vadlejch had the best of 86.67 and won a silver.

Also Read: Indian Women’s Hockey Team Misses Bronze Medal by Whisker, Loses to Great Britain by 3-4

Modi, PT Usha, Sehwag, Abhinav Bindra, All Laud Chopra

After the victory, the entire country erupted in frenzy and netizens took to Twitter to celebrate the glorious, maybe-once-in-a-lifetime moment.

Also Read: Golfer Aditi Ashok Misses Olympic Medal by a Whisker, Inspires a Generation of Golfers