Neeraj’s best throw in the competition was 85.73m. Being at the third place till the fifth round, the Indian was edged out in the sixth and final attempt by Germany’s Olympic champion Thomas Rohler who hurled the javelin to a distance of 85.76m
Zurich: After winning gold at the Asian Games 2018, India’s star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra missed out a bronze by a narrow margin at the Diamond League Final here on Thursday.
The 20-year-old Haryana boy headed to Europe from Indonesia and competed in the prestigious Diamond League event. The Commonwealth Games champion was impressive again but missed finishing on the podium by a mere 0.03 metre.
Neeraj’s best throw in the competition was 85.73m. Being at the third place till the fifth round, the Indian was edged out in the sixth and final attempt by Germany’s Olympic champion Thomas Rohler who hurled the javelin to a distance of 85.76m.
The Indian had throws of 78.53m, 85.73m, 80.99m, foul, 79.79m and 82.24m. He claimed a prize of $6,000 for his fourth place.
Germany’s Andreas Hoffman won the gold with 91.44m while the silver went to Magnus Kirt of Estonia (87.57m).
Neeraj had qualified for the Diamond League Final as the sixth best athlete and has so far competed at four legs. In Doha too he had finished fourth while in Rabat he was fifth. In Eugene he was sixth.
At the Asian Games 2018, Neeraj had broken his own national record with a throw of 88.06m. This was India’s first-ever javelin gold in the history of Asian Games.
Neeraj will next compete at the IAAF Continental Cup in Ostrava, Czech Republic from September 8 to 9.
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