87.58 Metres That Ended a Century of Waiting: Neeraj Chopra's Golden Throw

For more than a century of Olympic participation, no Indian had ever won an Olympic gold medal in athletics, the track and field events that sit at the very heart of the Games ^[3].

Some came agonisingly close. The great sprinter Milkha Singh finished fourth at the Rome Olympics in 1960 ^[5]. Near misses like his became part of India’s sporting memory, a mixture of pride and heartbreak.

Then, on the evening of 7 August 2021, in the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo, a 23-year-old from a village in Haryana ran down the runway, released his javelin, and turned away before it even landed. He knew. The throw measured 87.58 metres. It was enough to win gold ^[2][3].

His name was Neeraj Chopra.

A boy from Khandra

Neeraj was born on 24 December 1997 and grew up in Khandra, a village near Panipat in Haryana, in a joint family of farmers ^[2].

As a child, he was overweight, and his family encouraged him to exercise. He began going to a stadium in Panipat to run and lose weight. There, by chance, he saw older athletes throwing the javelin and tried it himself. Those who watched him noticed his talent ^[2].

He was soon training seriously, first in Panipat and then at the Tau Devi Lal Sports Complex in Panchkula, with his family’s support ^[2].

Rising fast

Neeraj’s talent was clear early. In 2016, he won the gold medal at the World Under-20 Championships in Poland with a throw of 86.48 metres, setting a junior world record ^[2]. It made people sit up.

Soon after, he joined the Indian Army as a junior commissioned officer, which gave him stability and support to train full-time. In 2018, he won gold at both the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast and the Asian Games in Jakarta ^[2].

Then came setbacks. In 2019, he needed surgery on his throwing elbow, which put that season’s World Championships in doubt ^[4]. The COVID-19 pandemic then disrupted competitions and training around the world.

The night in Tokyo

The Tokyo Olympics were held in 2021, a year late because of the pandemic ^[3].

In the final, he took the lead with his first attempt of 87.03 metres. On his second attempt he threw 87.58 metres, a mark none of the other finalists could match ^[2][3]. Among those he beat was Germany’s Johannes Vetter, who had been the favourite ^[2].

When the competition ended and the gold was confirmed, the whole of India celebrated. It was only the second individual Olympic gold medal in the country’s history, after Abhinav Bindra’s shooting gold in Beijing in 2008, and the first ever in track and field ^[3][5].

Neeraj dedicated his medal to the memory of Milkha Singh, who had died in June that year, saying that the legend’s dream had been fulfilled ^[5].

The Athletics Federation of India later declared 7 August as National Javelin Day, to encourage more young people to take up the sport ^[2].

Not a one-time wonder

What has made Neeraj’s story even more special is what he did next. Instead of fading after the high of Tokyo, he kept winning.

• In 2022, he won silver at the World Athletics Championships and became the first Indian to win the Diamond League final ^[2].
• In 2023, in Budapest, he became India’s first world champion in athletics, winning gold with a throw of 88.17 metres ^[2].
• At the Paris Olympics in 2024, he won silver with a season-best 89.45 metres, making him one of very few Indians to win two individual Olympic medals ^[1][2].
• In 2025, at the Doha Diamond League, he finally crossed the long-awaited 90-metre mark, with a throw of 90.23 metres ^[2].

He has been honoured with the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, India’s highest sporting award, and the Padma Shri ^[2].

The golden boy who stays humble

Part of the reason Indians love Neeraj is the way he carries himself. In interviews, he speaks calmly and simply. He thanks his coaches, family and the Army, and rarely talks about himself.

His friendship with Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, who won gold at Paris, has also been widely admired. The two have often praised each other, and Neeraj’s mother’s warm words about Nadeem after the Paris final touched many on both sides of the border ^[2]. It was a reminder that sport, at its best, can bring people together.

A boom in javelin

Before Neeraj, few Indian children dreamed of becoming javelin throwers. His success has made the event far better known across the country.

Neeraj has also worked to bring top-level javelin competition to India, so that young athletes can watch the world’s best in person ^[2].

Why his story inspires

Neeraj Chopra’s journey is about more than one great throw. It is about a village boy who found his gift by accident, a family that backed him, a system that supported him, and an athlete who worked through injuries and setbacks to reach the very top.

Most of all, it is about ending a long wait. For a century, India asked whether one of its own could win Olympic gold on the track or field. On a warm night in Tokyo, Neeraj Chopra answered with a single, perfect throw.