World Athletics Championships: The 24-year-old's first throw of 88.39m was enough to get him to the final...
Digital Desk: At the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra qualified for the men's javelin throw final on Friday with just one try. The 24-year-old's first throw of 88.39m was enough to get him to the final, as it surpassed the 83.50m automatic qualification threshold. Chopra was the first throw-in Group A during qualifying and kept up his excellent season-long performance to secure a spot in Sunday's final.
Neeraj clinched Group A with his throw, while Grenada's Anderson Peters surpassed him later in the day when the competitors in Group B battled it out with an attempt of 89.91 metres.
Apart from Peters and Chopra, only two other athletes qualified directly, with the remainder qualifying by finishing in the top 12 of the qualifying round.
Two more competitors passed the 83.50-meter mark: Jakub Vadlejch, who earned silver at the Tokyo Olympics with an effort of 85.23 metres, and Julian Weber, who threw an effort of 87.58 metres.
"The start was promising. I'll put everything I have into this", Chopra said following the preliminary round.
"My run-up has a small amount of zigzag. Although I shook a little, it was a good throw," he added.
After breaking the national record twice, Neeraj Chopra entered the World Championships in red-hot form.
Before sending his spear to 89.94 metres last month at the famous Diamond League in Stockholm, he had an 89.30 metres throw on June 14 in the Paavo Nurmi Games in Finland.
Meanwhile, he had won the javelin throw event in the Kuortane Games in Finland with a throw of 86.69m in wet and slippery conditions.
Given his current form, the Tokyo Olympics winner is predicted to make history by winning a medal at the World Athletics Championships, becoming only the second Indian and first male athlete from the nation.
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