The highly awaited javelin duel between India's Neeraj Chopra and Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem returns to centre stage on Thursday at the final of the World Athletics Championship. Having broken the 90-metre barrier earlier this season, Chopra is looking to retain his title and secure his position in history on the sport's grandest platform.
Chopra breezed through to qualification on Wednesday, qualifying for the final with a single attempt. His attempt of 84.85 metres easily exceeded the automatic qualifying mark of 84.50, showing his intent to fight for gold.
This is the fifth successive time Chopra has reached a final on his first go. The last four occasions were the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the 2022 and 2023 World Championships, and the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Germany's Julian Weber also gained automatic qualification, collecting the mark on his second effort. Following a 82.29 metres first attempt, Weber rebounded with a whoppinh 87.21-metre throw, qualifying for the final.
To meet them will be Chopra's fellow countryman Sachin Yadav, who only just qualified with a nervy wait, and perennial rival Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan, the Olympic champion, who successfully qualified with a rescue jump.
Chopra, who won silver in the 2024 Paris Olympics, will be the title holder that he won at the 2023 Budapest World Championships. The 27-year-old Haryanvi created history in Budapest when he became India's first-ever world champion in athletics with a throw of 88.17 metres. Pakistan's Nadeem had grabbed the silver that day with 87.82 metres.
The battle between the two escalated at the Paris Olympics a year ago when Nadeem surpassed Chopra, grabbing Olympic gold with a massive throw of 92.97 metres and the Indian sportsperson grabbing silver with a top throw of 89.45 metres.
