India’s Neeraj Chopra finished second in the men’s javelin throw event with a best effort of 83.80m at the Diamond League 2023 final in Eugene, Oregon on Saturday.
Neeraj Chopra became the first Indian to win the Diamond League trophy last year but could not defend his title at Hayward Field. The 2016 and 2017 Diamond League champion, Jakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic, won his third title with a best throw of 84.24 metres.
No athlete crossed the 85 meter mark in Eugene. Neeraj Chopra, who holds the Indian national record of 89.94m, had won a silver medal at the World Championships at the same venue last year with an effort of 88.13m.
Reigning Olympic and world champion Neeraj Chopra started with a foul in his first attempt. The 25-year-old achieved a mark of 83.80m with his second throw and moved into second place behind Jakub Wadlejch, who had started with an effort of 84.01m.
An 81.37m throw in the third attempt followed by another foul from Neeraj Chopra allowed Jacob Wadledge to retain the lead, while the latter managed just one legal throw in the first four attempts.
Tokyo 2020 silver medalist Jacob Wadlejsch had his best score of the night with a final effort to defeat Neeraj Chopra for the second time this year. Wadledge had also defeated Neeraj Chopra in the Zurich Diamond League last month.
Finland’s Oliver Helander finished third with a throw of 83.74 metres.
Neeraj Chopra’s scores in the Diamond League 2023 final in Eugene: No mark, 83.80m, 81.37m, No mark, 80.74m, 80.90m
Two-time world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada finished sixth with a throw of 74.71 metres.
En route to the final in Eugene, Neeraj Chopra won the Doha and Lausanne stages of the 2023 Diamond League series but had to settle for second place in Zurich. He qualified for the Diamond League finals with 23 points from three meetings, while Jacob Wadledge, who competed in all four qualifying events, finished on top with 29 points.
European Games champion Julian Weber finished second in the Diamond League series with 25 points but missed the final due to injury.
The Diamond League Final was Neeraj Chopra’s final appearance in this season. Their next task will be to defend their title at the Asian Games 2023, starting in Hangzhou later this month.
Diamond League 2023 Final: Men’s Javelin Throw Result
| 1 | Jakub Vadlejch (CZE) | 84.24m |
| 2 | Neeraj Chopra (IND) | 83.80m |
| 3 | Oliver Helander (FIN) | 83.74m |
| 4 | Andrian Mardare (MDA) | 81.79m |
| 5 | Curtis Thompson (USA) | 77.01m |
| 6 | Anderson Peters (GRN) | 74.71m |