The season's best effort was Chopra's only legitimate throw of the evening
Neeraj Chopra (Pic: AFP)
Gold eluded defending champion Neeraj Chopra as he signed off with a silver in the Paris Olympics 2024 men's javelin throw event, while Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem bossed the field with a new Games record of 92.97m on Thursday.
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The 26-year-old Chopra, who has never lost to Nadeem in their earlier 10 meetings, took the silver with his second round throw of 89.45m. He had won gold in Tokyo with a throw of 87.58m three years ago.
The season's best effort was the Indian's only legitimate throw of the evening.
His silver medal at the Paris Olympics 2024 cements his legacy in track and field, particularly in men's javelin. However, his path to the podium was far from straightforward, as he contended with an adductor injury leading up to the Games.
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Meanwhile, Nadeem's monster effort -- sixth longest in history -- also came in his second attempt which was like a bolt from the blue that stunned the Stade de France.
The earlier Olympic record stood at 90.57m in the name of Andreas Thorkildsen of Norway, set during the 2008 Beijing Games.
Grenada's Anderson Peters claimed bronze with 88.54m.
Nadeem also signed off in style with a closing throw of 91.79m. Prior to Thursday, only two Pakistan athletes had won individual medals of any colour - with a wrestling bronze in 1960 and a boxing bronze in 1988. Since the 1992 Barcelona Games, Pakistan has not won a medal of any kind.
Before Arshad's remarkable victory, Pakistan had never won an individual gold medal at the Olympics. All of Pakistan's previous three gold medals came in field hockey, with their team winning gold in 1960, 1968 and 1984.
(With agency inputs)
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