Union Minister Piyush Goyal, long-jump athlete Murali Sreeshankar hail Neeraj Chopra for crossing 90 m mark

In New Delhi [India], on May 17 (via ANI), Union Minister Piyush Goyal congratulated Indian world champion and Olympic gold medalist javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra following his achievement of surpassing the widely discussed 90-meter milestone at the Doha Diamond League held on Friday.

Neeraj Chopra, India’s world champion and Olympic gold medalist in javelin throwing, achieved a remarkable feat on Friday by becoming the first Indian to surpass the 90-meter mark in the sport. Nevertheless, following a phenomenal throw from Germany’s Julian Weber during the Doha Diamond League event, Chopra couldn’t claim victory and reach the highest step of the podium this occasion.

Sharing on X, Union Minister Goyal announced, “A milestone for India! Lt Col Neeraj Chopra achieves an extraordinary distance of 90.23 meters, setting his personal best during the Qatar Diamond League event!”

https://x.com/PiyushGoyal/status/1923447211179860413

Indian long-jump athlete Murali Shreeshankar also posted an Instagram story celebrating Neeraj’s feat.

Neeraj had the lead till the final round, crossing the 90-m mark with a stupendous throw of 90.23 m, breaking his own national record. However, in the last set of throws, Weber registered a brilliant effort of 91.06 m, dropping Neeraj to second spot. Grenada’s Anderson Peters is at number three, with a throw of 85.64 m.

Neeraj began his season impressively, launching his first throw to an impressive distance of 88.44 meters. This placed him at the top, followed closely by Anderson Peters from Grenada who threw 85.64 meters, securing the second spot. Rounding out the podium was Keshorn Walcott from Trinidad and Tobago, ending up third with a throw measuring 84.65 meters.

The renowned Indian athlete’s second attempt resulted in a foul, yet they were able to keep their leading position. Julian Weber from Germany secured third place with a distance of 85.57 meters.

Nevertheless, Neeraj’s third attempt, an astounding 90.23 meters, allowed him to surpass the prestigious 90-meter threshold, further increasing his advantage over the competition. This achievement also shattered his previous national record of 89.94 meters set at the Stockholm Diamond League in 2022.

However, Julian was nearly as good, managing a throw of 89.06 meters.

Neeraj’s fourth throw was 80.56 m, and the fifth throw was a foul. However, this still kept Neeraj in the lead, with Julian in second spot and Peters in third spot. However, Neeraj was beaten in the final set of throws, with Weber throwing 91.06 m to outdo the Indian, who finished in second spot with his final throw being 88.20 m. (ANI)