Olympic Qualification: Neeraj Chopra’s high class throw at a low-key meet

The university, a breeding ground for South Africa's athletes, attracts talent from around the world; army teams, athletic club members and some of the very best.

Neeraj Chopra of India in action. (File/Reuters)

Every week from October to April, the North West University hosts League Meetings for athletes who make Potchefstroom their training base. The university, a breeding ground for South Africa’s athletes, attracts talent from around the world; army teams, athletic club members and some of the very best.

They make a beeline to this city, an hour from Johannesburg, as spring makes away for summer while the frigid cold grips training centres in Europe. Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra was returning to competition at Tuesday’s League Meeting after 16 months. He was to test his throwing arm which underwent an elbow surgery in May last year in a field which comprised just three French club-level athletes and a promising junior from India. The video that Chopra tweeted showed fellow competitors cheering him. It gave the impression that Chopra was competing at a club-level meet which didn’t have the stamp of approval of World Athletics, the governing body of track and field.

Jean Verster, the secretary of the Athletics Central North West, the province which conducted the League Meeting, however, said despite the depleted field and the hand-written results sheet doing the rounds on social media, the throws were above scrutiny. By evening, Verster released the official results which have been forwarded to the statistician of Athletics South Africa and will be mailed to World Athletics.

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“Everything is official. League Meetings are recognized by Athletics South Africa, which is the national federation. We are one of the official provinces of Athletics South Africa. Our stadium is one of the oldest in the country and it was refurbished recently. Everything is as per international standards with national officials, electronic timing, standardised equipment. Neeraj Chopra’s throw will be recognized by the World Athletics,” Verster said. World Athletics had this to say in an email: “The results from last year’s competition were accepted so we have no reason to think that we will not accept these results.”

The low-turn out for the javelin event, Verster explained was because the League Meetings are held every Tuesday from October to April, expect during the holiday break between mid December and January. “One week you may have three to four competitors, while the next week you may have a dozen and the week after that half a dozen. We may not always have the numbers because athletes from around the world pick and choose which League Meeting they have to participate in. That said, every League Meeting is held as per international standards,” Verster added.

Competing in such meets makes sense for those undergoing rehabilitation here, like Chopra. The weekly League Meetings give athletes a chance to compete regularly without having to criss-cross a continent or having to go all-out against arch rivals and face scrutiny.

87.86 mtr
Feeling super awesome to be back in the competition mode.
Thank you everyone for your good wishes and supporting me always🙏जय हिंद 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/gO8iCMG8Di

— Neeraj Chopra (@Neeraj_chopra1) January 28, 2020

Keeping a close eye on the results was Athletics Federation of India’s high performance director Volker Herrmann. He was part of the think-tank which advised Chopra against rushing back from rehabilitation and participating at the World Championships in September-October.

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“We expected Neeraj to throw something around 83 metres to 84 metres so 87-plus in his first competition is very good. It is also a huge relief for him and now he has the confidence back with six months to go for the Olympics,” Herrmann said.

The decision to delay his comeback was a wise one, Herrmann believes. “Going to the world championships would have been a huge disruption of his training programme. It is not easy for a young athlete not to compete for 16 months. It was a good decision to give him the necessary time, because with such a talent you should never rush. In October, the coaches, the physio and myself, we discussed and looked at the things he has to improve and came up with a plan. We knew that this will take time, especially if you are trying to enhance technical aspects.”

The fourth throw which helped Chopra meet Tokyo Olympics Qualifying Standards stood out for another reason too, Herrmann said. “If you see the video, his speed is higher and the way he is throwing the javelin is smoother now. In the first three throws, I spoke to him and the coaches yesterday after competition, I think he wanted to try too hard and then he felt that was not the way to go and the last one was very smooth. It was a good decision that they decided not to throw any further (after the fourth).”

Hermann has a word of advice for those expecting the moon from Chopra immediately. “People may think now that he will throw 90 metres very soon. But the first thing for him is to follow the process. Remember he is still very young. Javelin throwers peak at 25, 26.”