After World Championships failure, Neeraj Chopra in Zurich Diamond League

19-year-old Chopra, the junior world record holder, failed to qualify for the final round at the London World Championships in London which concluded on August 14. He could not throw the iron spear to the automatic qualification mark of 83m and made an early exit from the competition.

Neeraj Chopra, Diamond League, sports news, Indian Express

For Neeraj, this will be his third Diamond League Meeting appearance this season, having finished fifth and seventh in Paris and Monaco in June and July respectively. (Source: AP)

His maiden World Championships in London ending in disappointment, India’s top javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra will now take part in the penultimate leg of the prestigious Diamond League Meetings in Zurich on Thursday.

19-year-old Chopra, the junior world record holder, failed to qualify for the final round at the London World Championships in London which concluded on August 14. He could not throw the iron spear to the automatic qualification mark of 83m and made an early exit from the competition.

He will be up against some of the best in world, including reigning Olympic champion Thomas Rohler of German and his compatriot and World Championships winner Johannes Vetter in this Swiss city on Thursday.

Except for Neeraj, all the other seven competitors in the top-class field had reached the final round in London.

For Neeraj, this will be his third Diamond League Meeting appearance this season, having finished fifth and seventh in Paris and Monaco in June and July respectively.

His season’s best remained the 85.63m effort which he did during the Federation Cup National Athletics Championships at Patiala in June.

He had a 85.23m while winning gold in the Asian Championships in July before coming up with a best throw of 82.26m in the (August 4-13) London World Championships.

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The competition is expected to be a battle between Vetter and Rohler, though World Championships silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch of Czech Republic is also there.

Vetter had won gold in London with a throw of 89.89m while Vadlejch had come up with 89.73m to take the silver.

Another Czech javelin thrower Petr Frydrych, who had won a bronze in London with a throw of 88.32m, is not competing in Zurich on Thursday.

Vetter and Rohler, who finished fourth in London with a throw of 88.26m, have been dominating this season by consistently throwing above 90m.

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This season, Vetter and Rohler have moved up to No. 2 and No. 3 respectively in all-time farthest throws of 94.44m and 93.90m respectively.