Olympic gold medalist and ace Indian javelin thrower, Neeraj Chopra won the first leg of the Diamond League season on May 05, 2023 with a commanding performance at the Qatar Sports Club.
Chopra, who had won the 2022 Diamond League Final title in Switzerland last year, defeated a star-studded field with a best throw of 88.67 meters on his very first attempt. The athlete is known for having a tradition of making his best throws in the first try.
The 25-year-old inched closer to his personal best throw of 89.94 metres, but was unable to surpass the 90-meter mark since the weather at the storied stadium was unfavorable for long throws.
Happy to begin my 2023 season with a throw of 88.67m at @dldoha. Thank you for your amazing support! 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/Sm9TSRILUR
— Neeraj Chopra (@Neeraj_chopra1) May 6, 2023
Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch, who won a silver medal in the Olympics in Tokyo, dazzled with a string of throws over 85 metres and bagged the silver with a best throw of 88.63 metres in his second attempt. With a best throw of 85.88 metres, world champion Anderson Peters, who had exceeded 93 metres in Doha the year before, came in third place.
Neeraj Chopra entered the Doha Diamond League having previously won the Diamond Trophy. He became the first Indian athlete to have the distinction in the top track and field competition when he won the Diamond League championship in Zurich.
