Neeraj Chopra ahead of Doha return
3 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jun 18, 2026 03:51 PM IST
Double Olympic medallist javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra is set to make a comeback and start his season at the Doha Diamond League on Friday after suffering an injury at the Tokyo World Championships last year.
However, he has a bit of regret. “I don’t think it was a good decision to compete in Tokyo knowing that I was already carrying an injury,” Neeraj said in the pre-event press conference of the Doha Diamond League.
“In athletes’ lives, if you try to save one injury, there is another one that can come up. But it was the last competition of the year, so I pushed for it.”
Chopra battled a back injury sustained during training before the World championships and played in Tokyo with it. The recovery took some time as he is set to make his return after a space of nine months.
“I had asked the organizers if it was fine to confirm my entry close to the tournament and they were fine with it,” said Chopra.
Last week, Athletics Federation of India (AFI) added him provisionally to the Commonwealth Games 2026 squad after he confirmed his competition readiness.
“Neeraj will be ready to compete in a few days and he will have to breach the 82.61m mark set by AFI for Commonwealth Games qualification,” AFI’s chairman of selection committee Adille Sumariwalla had said last week.
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However, performance shouldn’t be a worry for Neeraj, as Doha is considered one of the best venues for javelin throwers and it is the same venue where he crossed the elusive 90m mark last year.
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“Yes, I have that memory of the 90m mark throw. That is why it is one of my favourite venues. Although, Julian Weber immediately threw bigger than me that night,” Neeraj quipped when asked.
Although, he believes that the 90m throw was not perfect technically. “I don’t think the 90m throw was technically good. It came out fast from my arm but if I could do better with my lower, I’ll improve 2-3m more,” said Neeraj.
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Neeraj will be up against a World class field with Sri Lankan Javelin sensation and World leader Rumesh Pathirage, reigning world champion Keshorn Walcott, former world champion Anderson Peters, Tokyo Olympic silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch and Kenyan legend Julius Yego completing the line up.
“I’m happy for Rumesh. He is a good thrower and it is good to see someone from Sri Lanka throwing that well,” Neeraj said when asked about the exploits of Rumesh Pathirage.
After the Tokyo World Championships, Neeraj also parted ways with his coach and Javelin legend Jan Zelenzy. Currently, he trains with Jay Chaudhary, his senior and coach from early days. “I wanted to focus on my technique and implement my ideas. I have got a good team with me. Jay has known me since the early days, he has seen my whole journey. So, he understands my technique better,” said Neeraj.
It will be interesting to see how his body turns up after such a long injury layoff in such a competitive field.
