Neeraj Chopra misses a medal at World Championships 2025, Sachin Yadav shines with a personal best. [Photo Source: Reuters]
India’s javelin star Neeraj Chopra faced a rare setback at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. After seven years of consistent top finishes, the two-time Olympic medallist ended his medal streak with an eighth-place finish.
Meanwhile, 25-year-old Sachin Yadav announced his arrival with a personal best, finishing just shy of the podium.
Defending champion Neeraj Chopra could not retain his World Championships title on Thursday at the Olympic Stadium, where he won his historic Olympic gold. He managed a best throw of 84.03m, far below his personal best of 90.23m.
Neeraj revealed that a back injury, picked up during training in the Czech Republic two days before leaving for Tokyo, affected his performance.
"It’s sport, it’s life. I am experiencing this after a long time. I generally manage situations and adapt to them well. Today was a bit different. Before coming here, when I was training in the Czech Republic, I had a back issue. A few people were aware of it. I had an issue with my back," Neeraj told journalist Sundeep Misra.
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"I hadn’t trained in the last two weeks; I was only in rehab. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to compete in Tokyo. But still, we decided to go for it. I did only one session. I was able to land a good throw yesterday. I was hopeful of managing the situation, but I was not able to do it because I was away from training. I was not feeling very healthy."
This marks the first time in seven years that Chopra failed to win a medal at a major international event. It also ended his streak of finishing in the top two in 26 consecutive competitions.
Young javelin thrower Sachin Yadav from Uttar Pradesh impressed fans with a personal best of 86.27m. He finished fourth, missing a medal by just 40 centimetres.
"I am very happy for Sachin. I was hoping India would win a medal, but it didn’t happen. Sachin performed very well. On such a big platform, he performed very well. I am very happy. I am sure our javelin is in safe hands," Neeraj said.
Sachin’s series: 86.27, foul, 85.71, 84.90, 85.96, 80.95m.
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Trinidad and Tobago’s Keshorn Walcott won gold with a throw of 88.16m, 12 years after his Olympic gold in London. Grenada’s Anderson Peters took silver with 87.38m, while USA’s Curtis Thompson earned his first major medal, bronze, with 86.67m.
Even Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan struggled, finishing 10th. Germany’s Julian Weber also missed the podium despite throwing over 91m earlier in the season.
Tokyo’s hot and humid weather played a crucial role. High humidity lowers air density, it can limit javelin distances and have an impact on aerodynamics. Jakub Vadlejch, a Czech thrower, said, “I don’t see any of us hitting big distances. The conditions are not conducive to big throws.”
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Despite Neeraj's challenges, Sachin Yadav’s achievement marks the beginning of a new era for the Indian javelin. Through consistent training and remarkable achievements, younger athletes are catching up to big stars. Sachin's growth is expected to help India win more gold in the next international games.
