Why the Commonwealth silver may feel like a gold for javelin ace Neeraj Chopra

It was not as if Neeraj Chopra had anything left to prove to anybody before the men’s javelin final at the Commonwealth Games on Friday night. The challenge was more within himself – as he was coming back in a marquee event after a dismal finish outside podium in 2025 Tokyo World Championships 2025 after ages and from a serious lower back injury.

The expectations of the nation of 1.4 billion can be often unrealistic and at times - reflect a degree of ignorance about the demanding nature of the former Olympic and world champion’s event. As someone questions on the social media if the ‘aura’ is lost now that Neeraj has lost out on back-to-back shots at the gold at Paris Olympics and Glasgow – it surely hurts as Indian sport is unlikely to get anyone of his class and consistency anytime soon.

The silver last night with a season’s best throw of 85.83 metres is hence worth its weight in gold for Neeraj in a season where he had been competing selectively on his road to recovery – while it sets him up for an ideal build-up to the Asian Games in Aichi Nagoya in September-October.  Explaining the tactical aspect, the Indian ace said later: ‘’When you’re coming back from an injury, you have to be a little careful with every step. Today I was cautious. Sometimes I wanted to throw with full power and at other times I wanted to stay under control because of the conditions. Despite that, the throw was good.’’

While the in-form Sri Lankan Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage lived up to the expectations by striking gold with a 89.75m effort, it was a watershed evening to have two Indians in the podium finish in men’s javelin for the first time in these Games. Yashvir Singh of Rajasthan, who claimed the bronze with 85.41, considers Neeraj an elder brother like many of his ilk – a welcome augury which shows the legacy the former has been able to create in his sport.

A third Indian, Rohit Yadav, also made the final where he finished seventh with a best of 81.56m in his sixth attempt. There is a clutch of other young pretenders to the throne of Neeraj but consistency had not been their strong point so far and this is the area where the Tokyo gold medallist had conducted himself with utmost professionalism – be it management of injuries or taking tough calls regarding coach personnel.  

A glaring example of such inconsistency has been Sachin Yadav, who shook up the athletics fraternity with a heave of 86.27 m to finish an impressive fourth at the last Worlds. Neeraj’s eighth place finish in Tokyo began to raise questions in the media whether the hulk can be a successor to the golden boy but in less than a year, Sachin failed to make the cut for the CWG after not being able to achieve the qualifying mark of 82.61m.

Do the names of Kishore Jena and D.P.Manu also ring a bell? The 2023 Worlds in Budapest, where Neeraj became the world champion, the duo were also in the final to make it an Indian threesome with Jena eventually finishing fifth (84.77m) and Manu sixth (84.14). Both still continue to be funded by the TOPS (Target Olympic Podium Scheme) but truth be told, have not been able to rise to the occasion ever since.

This is what makes Neeraj’s role so important as the lone world class athlete from the India – and there’s no doubt the country can lean on his broad shoulders again for the Asian Games and the next Olympics cycle with LA 2028.

‘’I can’t say my fitness is back to what it used to be,’’ Neeraj said after the competition. ‘’I'm getting there gradually. Doha (Diamond League in June) was my first competition back, and nobody could say I was fully prepared then. I was a little better here but I'm still trying to regain my rhythm through the upcoming competitions."

While satisfied with the silver medal, Neeraj Chopra insisted there is still significant room for improvement as he builds towards the remainder of the season. ‘’Definitely, there's still room to improve,’’ he said, adding: ‘’ wouldn’t say I’ve improved a lot this season. I could have done even better’’.

This is the phase when Neeraj Chopra needs India's support...