Neeraj Chopra is an Indian track and field athlete who specialises in the javelin throw. He is best known for winning the gold medal in the men's javelin throw at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, becoming the first Indian to win an Olympic gold medal in athletics and only the second individual Olympic gold medallist for India after Abhinav Bindra. He further consolidated his standing in international athletics by winning the gold medal at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest and a silver medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
| Full name | Neeraj Chopra |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | 24 December 1997 |
| Place of birth | Khandra village, Panipat district, Haryana, India |
| Sport | Athletics (Javelin throw) |
| Profession | Athlete; Subedar Major (Junior Commissioned Officer), Indian Army |
| Unit | 4 Rajputana Rifles |
| Coaches (notable) | Uwe Hohn, Klaus Bartonietz, Jan Železný |
| Major medals | Olympic gold (2020), Olympic silver (2024), World Championship gold (2023), World Championship silver (2022), Asian Games gold (2018, 2023), Commonwealth Games gold (2018) |
| Personal best | 89.94 m (Stockholm Diamond League, 30 June 2022) |
| Civilian honours | Padma Shri (2022), Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award (2021), Arjuna Award (2018), Param Vishisht Seva Medal (2022) |
Neeraj Chopra was born into a Haryanvi Ror family of farmers in the village of Khandra, near Panipat. He was introduced to athletics as a teenager at the Shivaji Stadium in Panipat, where he initially took up running for fitness before switching to the javelin throw after watching senior throwers train at the venue. He later trained at the Tau Devi Lal Sports Complex in Panchkula and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) centre in Patiala.
He was commissioned as a Naib Subedar in the Indian Army's 4 Rajputana Rifles in 2016, a position which provided him with stable employment, training facilities and financial support during his developmental years. He has since been promoted within the Junior Commissioned Officer ranks.
Chopra came to international attention in July 2016 when he won the gold medal at the IAAF World U20 Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland, with a throw of 86.48 metres. The throw set a world under-20 record that stood as a benchmark in junior javelin throwing for years afterwards. He became the first Indian track and field athlete to win a world title at any age-group level.
In 2017 Chopra won gold at the Asian Athletics Championships in Bhubaneswar. In 2018, he completed a notable double by winning the Commonwealth Games gold in Gold Coast, Australia, and the Asian Games gold in Jakarta, Indonesia, where he set a then national record of 88.06 metres. An elbow injury and surgery in 2019 disrupted his preparation, but he returned strongly in early 2020.
At the Tokyo Olympics, held in August 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chopra won the men's javelin throw final on 7 August 2021 with a best throw of 87.58 metres. The medal was India's first Olympic gold in athletics since the country's participation began in 1900, and only the second individual Olympic gold for India.
In 2022, Chopra produced his career best of 89.94 metres at the Stockholm Diamond League meet, narrowly missing the 90-metre mark. He won the silver medal at the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, United States, becoming the first Indian male to win a medal at the World Championships in track and field. He won the Diamond League final in Zurich the same year, becoming the first Indian to win the overall Diamond League title.
Chopra won the gold medal at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, with a throw of 88.17 metres, becoming the first Indian to win a World Championship gold in athletics. He followed this with a gold medal at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, defending his continental title.
At the Paris Olympics, Chopra won the silver medal in the men's javelin throw with a best throw of 89.45 metres, his career second-best at the time. The gold was won by Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem with an Olympic record throw of 92.97 metres.
Chopra has worked with several internationally regarded throws coaches. Former East German world record holder Uwe Hohn coached him in his early senior career. German biomechanics expert Klaus Bartonietz served as his primary coach during the period in which he won the Olympic and World Championship gold medals. Following Bartonietz's retirement, Chopra began working with Czech javelin legend Jan Železný, the world record holder in the event.
Chopra's success has had a substantial impact on Indian athletics. His Tokyo 2020 gold marked a turning point in India's relationship with track and field, a discipline in which the country had historically underperformed at the global level. He has been credited with popularising the javelin throw in India and inspiring a generation of young throwers, several of whom have since broken the 80-metre barrier domestically. His consistency at major championships has also helped position India as a competitive nation in field events at Asian and global levels.