Neeraj Chopra Not Obsessed With 90m, Says Titles and Consistency Matter More

Glasgow: Two-time Olympic medalist Neeraj Chopra says he is not “obsessed” with breaking the 90m mark every time he competes and says winning major championships and finding success consistently in difficult conditions is more important than chasing a magic number.

The reigning world champion, who finally broke the coveted 90m barrier with a personal best throw of 90.23m at the Doha Diamond League last year, said his priority in any championship is to finish on top, with distance being a secondary consideration.

Responding to a question from PTI, Chopra said, “No, I don’t feel that kind of pressure nor am I obsessed with a particular distance. As an athlete, my goal is to always improve my distance.”

“In big games I always feel that the main challenge is to win a gold medal among the best athletes in the world. The second thing is the distance. So I feel like I have to keep increasing my distance.”

The 28-year-old acknowledged that weather and other external factors often affect javelin competitions and that consistency is as important as big throws.

“But when the conditions are tough we can’t get the distance. In that case we need to be consistent. So I feel like I need to keep my consistency and see how I can increase my distance.” he said.

Chopra, who finally cleared the 90-meter mark and erased years of speculation, said that improving her personal best remains an important long-term goal.

“I definitely want to improve my shooting.”

The men’s javelin throw has become one of Asia’s most competitive events, with Pakistan’s Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem, Sri Lanka’s Diamond League winner Rumesh Pathirage and Chopra regularly challenging each other on the international stage.

Chopra said, “This is a good thing. When the competition is tough, we can push each other more. Especially in South Asia, there is a very strong competition now. Everyone will push themselves here.”

Chopra is returning to the Commonwealth Games for the first time since winning gold on her debut at the 2018 Gold Coast edition, having missed Birmingham in 2022 through injury.

“The field is quite tough. Olympic and World Championship, Commonwealth Games and Asian Games medalists are here. They are all competing in the Diamond League.

With rain and strong winds expected for the competition, Chopra said she started preparing for the challenging conditions and believes the mental challenge will be as important as the physical challenge.

“I was doing some practice shooting yesterday. The conditions are tough but they are the same for everyone,” he said. “No matter how bad the conditions are, we have to stay mentally strong. I always think about how to produce the absolute best shot in the worst conditions.”

He said he was talking about his fitness. “It’s good now. After recovering, I played my first match in Doha and it went well. I worked on my weaknesses and conditioning and I feel much better now.

The title in Australia was the first major international gold medal of his career and marked the beginning of his rise to become one of the sport’s biggest stars.

“I have very fond memories of the Commonwealth Games. It was my first senior competition at the Commonwealth Games and I essentially started my senior career there when I won gold,” he said.

“It’s been eight years and I’m finally back here.

“As I always say, big Games are always special when you represent your country.

“I’m happy to be back on the field, I feel good and have been working on my game for a while now. The nature of competition has changed a lot in the last eight years,” he said.

Neeraj will compete on July 30, when the men’s javelin throw qualifiers are scheduled.