Neeraj Chopra, India's reigning world champion and Olympic gold medalist in javelin, is gearing up to defend his title at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo next month. The championships are scheduled to be held from September 13 to 21, 2025.
Despite a recent second-place finish at the Diamond League Final in Zurich, Switzerland, where he threw 85.01m, a performance he himself considered below par, confidence remains high that he will shine when it truly matters. In Zurich, Chopra opened with a throw of 84.35 meters, followed by 84 meters in his second attempt. He then registered three consecutive fouls, but secured the runner-up spot with 85.10 metres in his final attempt. Germany's Julian Weber dominated the competition with a personal best and world-leading throw of 91.51 metres.
Even with the challenging night in Zurich, Chopra's impressive consistency remains. The Diamond League Final marked his 26th consecutive top-two finish in international javelin events. Earlier in the 2025 season, Chopra achieved a personal best and national record of 90.23m in Doha. He also managed an 88.16m win in Paris.
Leading up to the World Athletics Championships, Chopra acknowledged that his "timing and run-up weren't good" in Zurich. He stated that he needs to throw a little farther and will try his best to regain his touch in the three weeks before the competition in Tokyo.
At the World Athletics Championships, more than 2,000 athletes from around 200 countries will compete. Chopra earned his spot at the World Athletics Championships as the defending champion. He will be joined in the men's javelin throw by Sachin Yadav and Yashvir Singh, who both secured berths via world rankings.
Neeraj Chopra's career includes an Olympic gold medal in track and field at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, and he holds the world junior javelin record of 86.48m. His personal best is 89.94m, set at the Stockholm Diamond League in 2022, which is the current Indian national record. Besides his Olympic triumph, Chopra won gold at the 2018 and 2023 Asian Games and captured the Diamond League title in 2022. In the previous edition of the World Athletics Championships, Chopra finished ahead of Arshad Nadeem to win gold.
