Neeraj Chopra and Arshad Nadeem, two of the world's leading javelin throwers, are set to compete at the Silesia Diamond League in Poland on August 16. This will be their first face-off since the Paris Olympics in 2024, where Nadeem won gold with a record-breaking throw of 92.97m, ahead of Chopra who secured silver for India.
The organizers of the Silesia Diamond League have confirmed that both Chopra and Nadeem will be participating in the event. They described the match-up as “the first opportunity for revenge after the Paris Olympics”. The event in Poland marks the 12th Diamond League event of the season.
Chopra, a two-time Olympic medallist, is currently ranked number one in the world by World Athletics, with 1,445 points. He recently won the top prize at the first-ever Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025, a competition named after him. Earlier in the year, he won the Potch Invitational in South Africa and finished second at the Doha Diamond League, where he threw a new national record of 90.23m.
Nadeem is currently ranked fourth in the world with 1,370 points. In May, he won gold at the Asian Athletics Championship in Gumi, South Korea, with a throw of 86.4m. The Diamond League organizers noted that Nadeem rarely appears on the European circuit, making his participation in the Silesia event a result of "his desire to face Chopra".
The clash between Chopra and Nadeem is highly anticipated, not only because they are two of the best javelin throwers in the world, but also because of the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan. The rivalry between the two athletes has become a symbol of the sporting rivalry between the two nations. Some tensions arose when Chopra invited Nadeem to the Neeraj Chopra Classic, but Nadeem ultimately did not attend the event after an attack in Kashmir prompted criticism of the invitation.
The Silesia Diamond League will be a crucial event for both Chopra and Nadeem as they prepare for future competitions. For Chopra, it will be an opportunity to avenge his loss to Nadeem at the Paris Olympics and reaffirm his status as the world's top javelin thrower. For Nadeem, it will be a chance to prove that his gold medal in Paris was not a fluke and that he is a force to be reckoned with on the world stage.
