Not just Neeraj: Can our javelin throwers challenge the world?

India can have a maximum of four javelin throwers at the world championships in Tokyo but only reigning world champion Neeraj Chopra is a confirmed starter.

- Avishek Roy

NEW DELHI: No Indian thrower has so far been able to breach the qualification mark of 85.50m. Besides Neeraj, only Sachin Yadav, who has shown impressive form this season, is in the race to make the cut through world rankings (top 36 qualify).

At the ongoing National Federation Cup in Kochi, Sachin won gold with a throw of 83.86m. The only other thrower who touched 80m was Yashvir Singh (80.85m). This, despite the fact that six throwers in the final on Monday had earlier crossed the 80m mark during the last three seasons.

Though it is still early into the season, throwers have struggled to go past 80m mark. At the Indian Open Throws Competition in March, seasoned Rohit Yadav, who has regularly gone past well beyond 80m in earlier seasons, took the first place with just a 78.87m throw. Yashvir's 77.49m was enough for a top spot in India Open Athletics meet in Chennai.

Contrast this with performances in previous few years, when Neeraj Chopra's stellar rise at the world level led to a javelin boom. Three Indian throwers competed at the 2023 world championships final and the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games saw the memorable duel between Neeraj and Kishore Jena for gold and silver.