Tokyo Olympics, Javelin throw final: Will Neeraj Chopra get the better of Johannes Vetter? | Tokyo Olympics News – Times of India
Imagine Neeraj Chopra on the podium at the Olympic Stadium on Saturday. That will be a big historical marker for Indian athletics starved of a medal winner after Norman Pritchard claimed the 200m silver on July 22, 1900.
Irrespective of who occupies the podium after the men’s javelin throw final where the top eight get six throws each, the build-up promises to be an exciting clash between Neeraj and world leader Johannes Vetter of Germany.
The German managed an automatic qualification mark for the final only in his third attempt while Neeraj went through with his first throw on Wednesday.
Though three of the season’s top five throwers crashed out in the qualification round, Vetter would be expected to show his true form on Saturday. Vetter has not consistently gone past the 90m mark in big finals and thus the 2017 world champion doesn’t look out of reach for the rest of the field. At the 2019 Worlds, Vetter took the bronze with 85.37m while he had an 89.89m while triumphing at the 2017 Worlds.
Neeraj season’s best of 88.07m is the second-best performance from among the finalists behind Vetter who touched a massive 96.29m in May. The Indian should also be wary of the second German in the fray, Julian Weber, Finland’s Lassi Etelatalo and Moldovan Andrian Mardare. Adding spice to the contest is Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem who entered the final topping Group B.
Four-time Olympian Vikas Gowda, the 2014 CWG champion in men’s discus throw, told TOI from USA: “Neeraj is definitely one of the best javelin throwers in the world but it’s hard to predict, anything can happen on that day. Competing at the Olympic level is getting harder every year. The performance levels are so high and it’s tough to sustain that level of performance for a long period of time.”
Only Vetter can beat Neeraj: Shivpal
Shivpal Singh, who failed to make the javelin final in Tokyo, said he expected nothing short of a gold medal from Neeraj. “Neeraj is in fine form and only Vetter can beat him. A medal is assured and if Vetter beats Neeraj, I’m sure he will bag the silver. Vetter struggled in the heat on Wednesday morning but the final is at 8 pm (local time) and that will favour the German. My prayer is for Neeraj to win the gold medal,” said Shivpal who returned to New Delhi on Thursday.
Irrespective of who occupies the podium after the men’s javelin throw final where the top eight get six throws each, the build-up promises to be an exciting clash between Neeraj and world leader Johannes Vetter of Germany.
The German managed an automatic qualification mark for the final only in his third attempt while Neeraj went through with his first throw on Wednesday.
Though three of the season’s top five throwers crashed out in the qualification round, Vetter would be expected to show his true form on Saturday. Vetter has not consistently gone past the 90m mark in big finals and thus the 2017 world champion doesn’t look out of reach for the rest of the field. At the 2019 Worlds, Vetter took the bronze with 85.37m while he had an 89.89m while triumphing at the 2017 Worlds.
Neeraj season’s best of 88.07m is the second-best performance from among the finalists behind Vetter who touched a massive 96.29m in May. The Indian should also be wary of the second German in the fray, Julian Weber, Finland’s Lassi Etelatalo and Moldovan Andrian Mardare. Adding spice to the contest is Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem who entered the final topping Group B.
Four-time Olympian Vikas Gowda, the 2014 CWG champion in men’s discus throw, told TOI from USA: “Neeraj is definitely one of the best javelin throwers in the world but it’s hard to predict, anything can happen on that day. Competing at the Olympic level is getting harder every year. The performance levels are so high and it’s tough to sustain that level of performance for a long period of time.”
Only Vetter can beat Neeraj: Shivpal
Shivpal Singh, who failed to make the javelin final in Tokyo, said he expected nothing short of a gold medal from Neeraj. “Neeraj is in fine form and only Vetter can beat him. A medal is assured and if Vetter beats Neeraj, I’m sure he will bag the silver. Vetter struggled in the heat on Wednesday morning but the final is at 8 pm (local time) and that will favour the German. My prayer is for Neeraj to win the gold medal,” said Shivpal who returned to New Delhi on Thursday.
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