 "Neeraj Chopra could only manage a best throw of 84.03m in the World Athletics Championships 2025 men's javelin throw final. Image: Reuters")
Defending world champion Neeraj Chopra missed out on another World Athletics Championships medal as he was knocked out early in the 2025 men’s javelin throw final at the National Stadium in Tokyo on Thursday. The reigning Olympic champion from Pakistan, Arshad Nadeem, was also one of the first athletes to get eliminated in the 10th position.
The 27-year-old Neeraj finished eighth in the 12-athlete javelin final with a best throw of 84.03m, competing in the same stadium where he won his Olympic gold medal four years ago.
Sachin impresses, but Neeraj struggles
India’s Sachin Yadav impressed on his debut, finishing fourth in a tightly-contested final in which no athlete was able to cross the 90m mark. Yadav recorded his personal best of 86.27m on his very first attempt but failed to improve that mark.
The gold medal was won by Trinbagonian Keshorn Walcott, who recorded the best throw of the event at 88.16m. This is the 2012 Olympic champion Walcott’s first world medal. Silver was won by Grenada’s Andersen Peters (87.38m), while USA’s Curtis Thomson edged Sachin to the bronze with a best throw of 86.67m.
Neeraj came into the tournament after finishing second in the Diamond League final last month with a best throw of 85.01m. Neeraj had struggled for rhythm on that night in Zurich , and it was not much different for India’s golden boy on Thursday, as he could not muster a clean throw in multiple attempts.
He began with an 83.65m before registering an 84.03m throw on the second attempt, which remained his best till the end. On the third attempt, Neeraj committed a foul before throwing 82.86m on the fourth. He ended the competition with another foul as he was eliminated in eighth position.
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This is the first time since June 2021 that Neeraj has finished outside the top two in a javelin throw competition.
Pakistan’s Nadeem also struggled similarly as he could only register a best throw of 82.75 in four attempts, two of which ended in a foul.
The build-up to the final was billed as a battle between Neeraj and Nadeem, but it ended as a damp squib, with both athletes now needing to rediscover their form.