- By Namrata Vijay
- Fri, 23 Aug 2024 08:08 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
Lausanne Diamond League 2024: India's star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra was seen struggling as he finished in the second position in the Lausanne Diamond League 2024. He has been suffering from a long-term adductor issue in his groin for almost the last year and that has led him to shift his focus on preventing his injury from getting aggravated rather than focusing more on his throw. And the same thing happened in Lausanne on Thursday.
Grenada's Anderson Peters came up with a meet record and his season best of 90.61m to finish first. Germany's Julian Weber finished third with a best throw of 87.08m.
He threw at the distance of 83m for most of his attempts and then there were chances that he might finish outside the top three for the first time since 2018.
But then he bounced back and threw at the distance of 85.58m and 89.49m respectively in his last two attempts and thus finished in the top three once again and inched closer to that 90m mark again.
“In the beginning, it was really hard today. My body didn’t feel good. But I pushed myself mentally in the fifth and last attempt. In the last attempt, I won because (Anderson) Peters threw 90 meters. And the body didn’t feel good but the fighting spirit was nice today. I liked that comeback with my second-best throw,” he told broadcasters after the event.
His 89.49m throw was his season's best and also his second-best throw. It should be noted here that his top three throws helped him finish at the second place.
“In the last throw, I didn’t think much and I just gave my best. I think too much. In the beginning, I was thinking I have to do this, do that. But Julius Yego told me, ‘Stay relaxed, you will throw far.’ So I tried to stay relaxed and hit it clean", he revealed.
Neeraj admitted that his injury concerns didn't aggravate so much after the Paris Olympics 2024 and for that, he thanked his physio, Ishan Marwaha- for keeping things simple for him.
“Luckily after Paris, it was not too much. So I did some treatment with my physio. He did well and I feel good. I did some very easy throwing sessions after Paris. And it was a strange competition today. In the beginning, I did not feel that I could throw that far but in the end it was really good", he said.
During a press conference before the Lausanne Diamond League, Neeraj revealed that he plans to end his season in the Diamond League finals in Brussels next month. There are also high chances that he might be seen in action in the Zurich Diamond League, which will be held on September 5.
“We will see. Maybe maximum one more competition and then (I’ll) finish the season", he added.
He was also asked about his plans for the next season to which he replied that he wants to fully focus on his fitness.
“First my goal is to go to the doctor and make my groin 100% fit. It will help me be more technically better next year and then maybe I will try to throw far again", he concluded.
