CHENNAI: From an Indian perspective, ace javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra will be the cynosure of all eyes on Saturday. Hopes are firmly pinned on the 23-year-old ending India’s long-standing quest for an athletics medal.
The qualifying event on Wednesday, where he flung the spear to a distance of 86.15m to finish first, was a promising teaser of what Neeraj is capable of. His main rival is Germany’s Johannes Vetter, who has a slew of 90m+ throws under his belt this season.
It should be to Neeraj’s advantage that the likes of Julius Yego (Kenya) and Keshorn Walcott (Trinidad and Tobago) – who finished on the podium in Rio – and Marcin Krukowski (Poland), who had a season’s best of 89.55m, have failed to qualify for the final.