Neeraj Chopra, Gold Medallist, Is An Army Subedar: 10 Things To Know

Neeraj Chopra made history at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and won India its first gold at the contest. Following the win, he became the first athlete from independent India to win a medal in a track and field event. Besides an athlete, Neeraj Chopra is also a soldier in the Indian Army. Let’s have a look at some interesting facts about the man of the moment.

1. Neeraj is from the village of Khandra in Haryana's Panipat district. Neeraj grew in a 17-member joint family and was the eldest of the children. He is the son of a farmer.

2. Neeraj Chopra is a Subedar with 4 Rajputana Rifles in the Indian Army. He is a graduate of DAV College in Chandigarh.

3. According to his bio on the Olympics official website, Neeraj took up the sport in 2011, inspired by watching people practice throwing javelin in Haryana.

4. He had set a world junior record at the 2016 IAAF World U20 Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland.

5. In 2017, he won another gold at the Asian Athletic Championships with a throw of 85.23m.

6. He broke the national record with a throw of 87.43m at the Doha Diamond League in 2018.

7. In 2018, he became the only track and field athlete to be nominated by the AFI for the country's highest sports award, Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award.

8. He was conferred with the Arjuna Award after winning a gold at the Gold Coast Commonwealth in 2018.

9. His win is India's first gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

10. It is also the country's second individual gold medal in Olympic history after Abhinav Bindra's heroics in Beijing 2008.