Panipat (Haryana) [India], August 9 : Neeraj Chopra's father, Satish Kumar, was proud of his son's remarkable effort that saw him script history at the Paris Olympics after clinching the silver medal in the men's javelin throw final at Stade de France.
When stakes were high in one of the biggest sporting events, it was Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem who raised the bar by breaking the Olympic Record with a mammoth throw in front of a jam-packed crowd.
Neeraj delivered his season-best attempt of 89.45m, but it wasn't close to Arshad's humongous throw of 92.97 meters.
Before the Paris Olympics, Neeraj had a fair share of trouble with injuries. The groin injury that haunted him in 2023 and forced him to miss the Commonwealth Games returned early in May after he felt discomfort in his adductor.
Satish, who was proud after witnessing Neeraj's performance and felt it was Pakistan's day in the men's javelin throw final, felt that his injury had a role in his performance.
"Everyone has their day. Today was Pakistan's day. But we have won silver, and it is a proud thing for us. I think his groin injury had a part in his performance," Satish told ANI.
His father believes that Neeraj's success in Paris will serve as an inspiration for the next generation.
"He has won silver for the country. We are happy and proud. All the youths will get inspired by him," Satish told reporters.
A big screen was arranged for people from Neeraj's neighbourhood, and people turned up in numbers to see Neeraj perform in Paris.
Following his triumph, sweets were distributed among people, and crackers were burst to celebrate India's first silver and overall fifth at the Paris Olympics.
Neeraj's mother Saroj Devi was happy with the way his son delivered in the Summer Games and is eager to cook her son's favourite meal.
"We are very happy. For us, silver is also equal to gold. The one who got the gold is also like our son. He was injured, so we are happy with his performance. I will cook his favourite food," she said.
Neeraj's grandfather, Dharm Singh Chopra, also reacted to his grandson's win and said, "He has given his best performance and won silver, adding one more medal to the country."
To defend his Tokyo gold medal, Neeraj had to do what he still has to achieve in his career, breaching the 90m mark.
After Arshad sent shockwaves throughout the athletics community with an Olympic Record effort of 92.97m, Neeraj had to dig deep and pull out his biggest performance ever.
However, he struggled to find his groove and registered a single legal attempt out of six, which turned out to be his season-best attempt.
Arshad effortlessly sent his javelin past the 90m mark to deliver one of the greatest track and field performances in the history of the Olympics. He broke the Olympic record in his second attempt and capped off his impressive display with a remarkable throw of 91.79m to take away the gold.
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