New Delhi, April 21 (H.S.) : India’s star athlete Neeraj Chopra has achieved every milestone by winning gold medals at major platforms like the Olympics, World Championships, Commonwealth Games, and Asian Games. Now he is set to take a step that he considers his biggest legacy. For the first time in India, an international-level javelin throw competition called ‘Neeraj Chopra Classic’ will be organized.

Initially, this competition was supposed to take place at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium in Panchkula, Haryana, but due to technical issues with the stadium’s floodlights, it will now be held at the Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on May 24.

The special event has also extended an invitation to Pakistan’s Olympic medalist Arshad Nadeem. However, there has been no official confirmation from his side yet. The encounters between Neeraj and Arshad on the field have always been exciting, and if he attends, the competition will become even more interesting.

This tournament will see participation from several prominent athletes including World Champion Anderson Peters (Grenada), Julius Yego (Kenya), 2016 Olympic Gold Medalist Thomas Röhler (Germany), current world leader Curtis Thompson (USA), and Neeraj Chopra himself.

In a virtual press conference, Neeraj stated, When I used to win gold at the Olympics or World Championships, people would ask me what’s next? I have fulfilled those dreams, but organizing this tournament was a dream for me. I feel that I am able to give something back to Indian athletics and the athletes here.

Neeraj last participated in the Federation Cup 2024 in India, where he won a gold medal by throwing the javelin 82.27 meters.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar