Neeraj Chopra eager to compete against international stars in India

India’s javelin sensation, Neeraj Chopra, who recently secured a historic silver medal in javelin at the Paris Olympics on August 11 expressed his desire to compete against the international stars in India. Neeraj called for India to host international javelin competitions.

Neeraj 26, expressed a strong desire to see international javelin competitions held in India and eagerness to compete against the world’s best throwers on his home soil.

"It is my dream to compete with other international stars in India. I hope there will be an international competition soon in India and I can do that," Olympics.com quoted Chopra as having said during an interactive session with fans.

Neeraj, one of India's most consistent athletes, is the country’s current javelin world champion and also a gold medalist at both the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games. Chopra’s silver is India’s only second-place finish in this edition (alongside five bronze). Chopra, whose silver was his second successive Olympic medal after the gold in Tokyo, said he wanted to work on certain areas of his game.

Chopra, whose silver was his second successive Olympic medal after the gold in Tokyo, said he wanted to work on certain areas of his game.

"I don't have enough time to change training methods or technique as I am entering a new season now. I hope to improve in a couple of areas, especially the javelin line.

"I want to further improve the correct angle of throwing so that I get more power in my throw. I will certainly work on it," he said.
Neeraj praised Manu Bhaker, who clinched two medals at the Paris Olympics (both bronze). Bhaker won a bronze in 10m air pistol individual and mixed team events.

“The way Manu Bhaker prepared her mind and came from her Tokyo setback is impressive. Her mindset appeared to be very strong this time while taking part in back-to-back competitions. I think it's just a start for her because I saw even people aged 50 or above participating in shooting,” said Neeraj.

"I hope Manu will play in a lot more competitions, bring a lot more medals for the country, and change the color of the medal too," he added. The 26-year-old also hailed the Indian hockey team's goalkeeper, PR Sreejesh, who retired from top-level competition with a bronze in Paris.

“Sreejesh is a very relaxed and funny person. He motivates younger players a lot. He had said that he would retire after the Olympics. The players, I think, also felt that they should win it for Sreejesh bhai after doing so many great things for the team,” said Neeraj.