For a country starved of gold medals at the Olympics. August 7 will remain special for a long-long time. Neeraj Chopra created history by winning gold in the men’s javelin throw event to become only the second individual medallist from India after Abhinav Bindra to win gold at the Summer Olympics.
Chopra set the mark early, as he qualified as the top ranked athlete on August 4. His first throw of 85.65 m was enough for him to top his group in qualifying. In the final on August 7, Chopra once again set the benchmark early with a first throw of 87.03 m. He bettered it with his second throw of 87.58 m. which remained his best at the end of six throws as well. Considering none of the other finalists got past the 87 m mark, his first two throws were the best in the competition.
Chopra’s gold is India’s first gold since 2008, when Bindra won in the 10 m air rifle shooting event. Chopra’s heroics is even more special because it is India’s first medal in athletics since independence. Considering Chopra has started it off with a gold, there’s hope for more in the years to come.
Picture Credit : Google
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