BENGALURU: TILL 2024, Neeraj Chopra was so good he couldn't help himself but win. In 2025, he has started unlocking side quests. His latest one saw the titular character dominate the inaugural edition of the NC Classic at the floodlit Sree Kanteerava Stadium on a cool, windy Saturday night.
Even if the result was never in doubt — forget that the Indian ace fouled his first throw on a night which didn't lend itself automatically to big throws because of the conditions — the 14500-odd fans were given a rare glimpse into why Chopra is not just a javelin royalty but a global superstar who puts bums on seats.
He made every throw into theatre and the hoi polloi lived each of his throw with a collection of ooohs and aaahs. As is customary these days, as soon as the winning throw left his right hand, he held both his arms aloft. As the spear soared into the distance before landing 86.16m away, the 27-year-old knew that this distance would give him the win.
On a difficult night for throwing — a lot of athletes struggled for rhythm and consistency as they battled the conditions — the two-time Olympic medallist problem solved on the fly to keep his barely believable streak of finishing either first or second alive (25 and counting for those asking).
But Saturday wasn't just about Chopra the competitor. Saturday was, by and large, about establishing a world-class athletics meet in India. You can argue the meet itself was slightly below par in terms of final distance thrown by athletes (not a lot of men's javelin meets see two medallists finishing with a distance below 85m). But the symbolism was there for everyone to see.
India's first individual Olympic gold medallist in athletics willed this into existence. He put in place a team to take care of the logistics. He lent his name to the event knowing full well his reputation was on the line (he was treated rather unfairly in the wake of the Pahalgam attacks because Arshad Nadeem was one of the many world-class throwers originally invited for the inaugural edition). Advertisers came on board as the Indian had emerged as the public face of the competition. An impossible dream had come to fruition a little after 7.30 PM on Saturday when the event began in earnest.
But it took time for the touchpaper to be lit. The crowd — all of whom were given inflatable noisemaking sticks to help create an electric atmosphere — finally found their voice as the familiar frame of Chopra wound down the runway to hurl the javelin well past the 80m mark to set the pace in the second round.
When Sri Lanka's Rumesh Pathirage (keep an eye out for him in the next few years) sailed past that mark, a challenge was laid down. But Chopra wasn't going to be denied, especially on a night like this. It's what he does; so off his next throw, he hurled the spear to a distance of over 86m. Normalcy was restored in the blink of an eye.
Former world champion Julius Yego split the two to finish second but it wasn't enough to dislodge the man of the hour from the top step of the podium.
When the lights were switched off the Stadium and the fans, one thought lingered. This was Chopra's big party. And he triumphed in it.
Top three and their six throws
Neeraj Chopra: X, 82.99m, 86.18m, X, 84.07m, 82.22m
Julius Yego: 79.97m, 80.07m, 79.73m, 84.51m, X, 82.45m
Rumesh Pathirage: 71.19m, 81.90m, 84.34m, X, 80.10m, 77.23m
