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India.com
05-07-2025
- Sport
- India.com
Neeraj Chopra Wins Inaugural Edition Of NC Classic With Best Throw Of 86.18m
India's star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra won the inaugural edition of Neeraj Chopra Classic in Bengaluru on Saturday, July 5. Neeraj won the NC Classic 2025, an event named in his honour with a best throw of 86.18m at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru. Reigning men's javelin throw world champion Neeraj Chopra dominated the NC Classic 2025, winning the event named in his honour at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday. Kenya's Julius Yego and 2015 world champion, logged a season's best of 84.51m with his fourth attempt to finish second. On the other hand, Sri Lanka's Rumesh Pathirage completed the top three with a best effort of 84.34m. Meanwhile, India's Sachin Yadav, who won a silver medal at the 2025 Asian Athletics Championships was fourth with a best throw of 82.33m. Neeraj, a two-time Olympic medallist, began with a foul before taking the lead with 82.99m with his second attempt. He momentarily lost the perch to Pathirage before regaining it with 86.18m in his third. The 27-year-old Chopra logged 84.07m and 82.22m with his final two throws but no one came close to matching his third attempt. Neeraj Chopra shows exactly why he's a champion! Brings out his A game in the third round with a massive 86.18m, taking the lead back from Rumesh Pathirage. The crowd is loving it! #NCClassic 2025 #GameOfThrows #CraftingVictories #NeerajChopra — Inspire Institute of Sport (@IIS_Vijayanagar) July 5, 2025 Notably, the inaugural edition of the Neeraj Chopra Classic marked a historic chapter for the athletics scene in the country as the first-ever World Athletics Continental Tour Gold Level or World Athletics Category A event held in India. The NC Classic, which was co-organised by Neeraj himself, along with JSW Sports, Athletics Federation of India (AFI) and World Athletics, featured a field of 12, including seven international stars. It was Neeraj's sixth competitive outing of the 2025 athletics season. Neeraj started his season with a win at the Potch Invitational in South Africa before finishing second at the Doha Diamond League, where he breached the 90m barrier with a massive 90.23m throw. The Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold medallist had to settle for a second-place finish again at the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial in Poland. But, he returned to winning at the Paris Diamond League before clinching the top spot at the Ostrava Golden Spike last month. The NC Classic was also Neeraj's first outing on Indian soil after winning the Federation Cup in Bhubaneswar last year.
Indian Express
05-07-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
Neeraj Chopra, the host, organiser and the winner of inaugural NC Classic
On a windy and cool evening in Bengaluru, javelin throwers at the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic battled the conditions which didn't make life easy for some of the very best. The red and white wind-indicator flags fluttered right through the six rounds. The 800-gram spear changed direction in the early rounds, some throws went to the right and some to the left. This was a night of smooth sailing through the air. There was a strong headwind but also a swirl across the stadium which changed direction often, Neeraj summed up the post competition which he won. The throwers eventually came to grips with the breeze but the start was slow. None crossed the 80-metre mark in the first round. Julius Yego, the 2015 World Champion, took the early lead with 79.97 metres. Neeraj Chopra, the main man, tumbled over the line and fouled his first throw. The spectators gasped. However, he got up quickly but shook his head. A demanding five rounds lay ahead. Chopra said he was too excited and wound up as a lot was at stake with him being the face of the NC Classic. His coach Jan Zelezny, Chopra said, asked him to relax. So did Yego. Neeraj Chopra shows exactly why he's a champion! 💥 Brings out his A game in the third round with a massive 86.18m, taking the lead back from Rumesh Pathirage. 🇮🇳 The crowd is loving it! 🔥#NCClassic 2025 #GameOfThrows #CraftingVictories #NeerajChopra — Inspire Institute of Sport (@IIS_Vijayanagar) July 5, 2025 Just before the competition started, the event organiser in him was tense because they were a few minutes behind schedule, Neeraj said. During the event, when the tiny robot cars were seemingly taking a little extra time to transport the javelins back, he was worried if the throwers were waiting too long. In competition, he must have gotten tense after a dark horse emerged — Sri Lanka's Rumesh Pathirage, a fast bowler turned javelin thrower, and a rising star from the subcontinent. By the second round, the 80-metre throws began registering. Yego first with 80.07 metres, Pathirage's 81.90m, Brazil's Luiz Mauricio Da Silva with 80.31 metres. Neeraj, the last thrower among the 12, went into the provisional lead with 82.99 metres. The javelin's trajectory was leftward as it crossed the 80-metre mark. He quickly went over to his coach Jan Zelezny, the world record holder, and looked at a tablet. One of the world's best was having a word with the all-time great. 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧! 🙌 We have our Top-3 of the the Inaugural #NeerajChopraClassic 👌#NeerajChopraClassic #JavelinThrow — Neeraj Chopra Classic (@nc_classic) July 5, 2025 But he would have to fight back to retain the lead in the third round and eventually win gold. India's Sachin Yadav, the Asian Championship silver medallist crossed the 80-metre mark in the third round but the real challenge came in the form of Pathirage. Immediately after Sachin, the Sri Lankan produced 84.34 metres, a big throw given the conditions, and took the lead. Neeraj was in second place now, and the competition had heated up on the cool evening. Neeraj pumped himself up, with the javelin in one hand he clapped over his head to get the fans going. On release, the momentum made him touch the turf with his left hand but the distance was good. Even before the javelin landed he raised both his arms, a sign that it was a big one. Then, he kept his right arm raised and then turned around to face the spectators and roared. He and the entire stadium waited for half a minute before the screens flashed 86.18 metres. The fans came to see Neeraj put on a show and he delivered. In the fourth round, Yego found his best throw of the night, 84.51 metres in the fourth round, to move into second place. That was the last challenge to Neeraj's top finish. Neeraj registered two more 82-metre-plus throws after a foul in the fourth round. After his final throw, he bowed down with clasped hands to thank the crowd. In the VIP box was his family, even more reason to make it a special night. Neeraj. Yego. Pathirage. Three names, one moment etched in time. The podium stood tall — just like their journeys.#NeerajChopraClassic #GameOfThrows — Neeraj Chopra Classic (@nc_classic) July 5, 2025 Camped in Bengaluru for over a week, donning the role of an organiser for his own event, Neeraj admitted there was 'pressure'. 'So many people came to support me and the competition is named after me. There was pressure on me to perform well. Julius and Rumesh pushed hard today. I felt that there would be a bigger throw today but the wind was also swirling about,' he said. 'And there was a headwind so it was tough to throw. I was not happy with my run-up. But I felt good to have the trophy and the medal in my first competition. My biggest target was to make the competition a success and that happened.' He also said it was a different experience to be involved in the organisation of an event. 'I was training also but I also had to spend time travelling and meeting people. But at the back of my mind, I knew that I had to perform also. This competition has made me stronger in the sense that under a new kind of pressure, I could perform.' Once the competition was done, Neeraj did a mini victory lap, signing autographs and shaking hands with fans across the fence. The icing on the cake was Neeraj standing on the podium with Yego and Pathirage beside him as the national anthem played. He'll wind down the day sitting round with the family and 'chatting and laughing'. 'It has been a while since I met my family.'
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First Post
05-07-2025
- Sport
- First Post
Watch: Neeraj Chopra's 86.18m throw that sealed Indian javelin star's triumph at inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic
Neeraj Chopra won his third consecutive event at the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic at Bengaluru's Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Saturday with a best throw of 86.18m in his third attempt. read more Neeraj Chopra let out a roar as soon as the javelin left his hand in his third attempt, which measured 86.18 metres that was enough for him to win gold at the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic. PTI Neeraj Chopra emerged triumphant at the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic in Bengaluru on Saturday, winning his third consecutive event in the process. Chopra, a co-organiser of the event named after himself, secured gold with a best throw of 86.18 metres that came in his third attempt. Kenya's Julius Yego (84.51m) and Sri Lanka's Rumesh Pathirage (84.34) collected silver and bronze respectively, the two being the only others to breach the 84-metre mark while rising Indian javelin prospect Sachin Yadav finished a creditable fourth with a best throw of 82.33m. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Poland's Cyprian Mrzygłód completed the top five with a best throw of 82.23 metres. Watch Chopra's gold-winning throw in Bengaluru: Neeraj Chopra shows exactly why he's a champion! 💥 Brings out his A game in the third round with a massive 86.18m, taking the lead back from Rumesh Pathirage. 🇮🇳 The crowd is loving it! 🔥#NCClassic 2025 #GameOfThrows #CraftingVictories #NeerajChopra — Inspire Institute of Sport (@IIS_Vijayanagar) July 5, 2025 Chopra had arrived at the event, which took place in front of nearly 15,000 people at Bengaluru's Sree Kanteerava Stadium, as the strong favourite for a top-of-the-podium finish. Especially after a last-minute withdrawal by Grenada's Anderson Peters, who had collected bronze at last year's Paris Olympics behind Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem and Chopra and later denied the Indian the title in the Diamond League Final. And in the end, the 27-year-old double Olympic medallist lived up to his favourite billing. What made his victory sweeter was the fact that it took place in front of a home crowd, and not some event in Europe or elsewhere in the world. Chopra had earlier breached the 90-metre mark for the first time in his career at the Doha Diamond League in May, though his throw of 90.23m wasn't enough for him to win the event. The Haryanvi athlete, however, emerged triumphant in his next two outings – at the Paris Diamond League meet as well as at Golden Spike Ostrava. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
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First Post
05-07-2025
- Sport
- First Post
Thunderous applause, packed stands and Neeraj Chopra victory: Bengaluru witnesses home champion's class and rare athletics celebration
It was Neeraj's tournament, his home turf, and his gold medal — witnessed by a surreal, near-unbelievable crowd, a rarity for athletics in India. But then again, Neeraj Chopra himself is rare. Let's savour him, celebrate him, and hope he inspires the next generation. read more Neeraj Chopra winning a javelin event is regular but an international event on home turf with a huge turnout For NC Classic 2025 in Bengaluru was special. Images: PTI/Neeraj Chopra Classic Is India ready for an athletics revolution — not just on the track, but off it as well? Neeraj Chopra has tried, with the support of the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), JSW Sports, and World Athletics, through the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025. Lending his own name to underlines the two-time Olympic medallist's deep understanding of his brand value and the impact it can create. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD But the proof of the pudding is in the eating. And if you were in the famous West Block Stand of the Sri Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru or anywhere else in the arena on Saturday, you'd know: it was one very tasty pudding indeed. Neeraj Chopra's first attempt is a foul as he stumbles onto the track. It looked like a good effort. @FirstpostSports — Ujwal (@UjwalKS) July 5, 2025 The organisers, who seemingly did not do enough outdoor advertisement and activation activities before the competition, did an excellent job during the one-day historic track and field event as Neeraj Chopra and a group of elite athletes including former Olympic champions and record holders, lit up Bengaluru to deliver a rare thrilling night of athletics in India. Neeraj delivers on his big night in India That Neeraj, surprise, surprise, won the competition with a throw of 86.18m was the icing on the cake. He started with a foul, but guess what, he only needed one more throw. His second attempt of 82.99m put him in the lead, surpassing Rumesh Pathirage's 81.90m in the strong 12-man field. Rumesh responded with an 84.34m effort on his third attempt and celebrated wildly, arms flung in the air, turning back to revel in the moment in front of the Indian crowd in the North Block. Neeraj's third attempt? A mind-boggling 86.18m, delivered amid cold and windy conditions in Bengaluru. Neeraj wins NC Classic 2025 with a best throw of 86.18m and Vande Mataram is ringing around here. — Ujwal (@UjwalKS) July 5, 2025 STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD It was bewildering not just because Neeraj responded with a perfect throw immediately after being challenged for the gold on home turf, but because he has an uncanny ability to deliver his best when it matters most. To crystallise his clutch ability, here's a piece of trivia — Neeraj hasn't finished outside the top two in any top-level competition since 2021. How 'Mr Consistent' Neeraj does it time and time again is less of a mystery and more a testament to his unbeatable mental strength, genius, and relentless hard work. Since the third attempt, 'Mr YouTube' of Kenya, Julius Yego, was the only one who came close to Neeraj with a throw of 84.51m and Neeraj replied with 84.07m in the fifth round, but there was no real challenge. The real challenge probably was how the Indians would take to a historic athletics event in India. The magnitude of the event cannot be summarised in such few words, but India isn't the greatest example of a sporting nation. Those fears were allayed pretty early, as 14,593 fans turned up at the stadium — most of them already in their seats two hours before the event began, humming along to the rap songs of Haryana's Dhanda Nyoliwala and dancing to the moves of The Vixens Crew. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Rapper Dhanda Nyoliwala is setting up the mood at Bengaluru's Sree Kanteerava Stadium ahead of the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic, which is scheduled to get underway 15 minutes from now Follow #NCClassic LIVE Updates: — Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) July 5, 2025 It was Neeraj's tournament, his home turf and his gold medal, witnessed by a surreal crowd — a rarity for an athletics event in India. But Neeraj is rare, let's savour him, celebrate and hopefully the next generation is getting inspired.
India Today
05-07-2025
- Sport
- India Today
In windy Bengaluru, Neeraj Chopra wins NC Classic, Sri Lanka's Rumesh shines
Swirling winds could not deny Neeraj Chopra a victory in his own event, as the Indian superstar clinched the maiden Neeraj Chopra Classic with a throw of 86.18m on Saturday, July 5. Neeraj put in an incredible show, not only as an athlete but as an organiser as well, in an electrifying event at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru.A packed crowd came to the stadium to watch Neeraj and some of the top javelin stars in the world. The first-of-a-kind event gave them their money's worth, where the athletes were forced to battle it out, not only amongst themselves but against the weather conditions as Chopra Classic: Updates It was not one and done for Neeraj Chopra on Saturday, rather, far from it. The swirling winds at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium made it difficult for Neeraj to achieve a perfect throw in his own competition. Known to stamp his authority in competitions with his very first throw, Chopra stumbled in his run-up, forcing his first throw to be ruled Yego, a friend and longtime competitor, walked up to him, gesturing to Chopra to calm his nerves. Yego, who understands well the pressure of carrying the hope of his country, spoke to him for a brief moment. The talk seemed to do the trick in the second round, where Neeraj threw a terrific distance of 82.33m, taking the lead for a brief moment in the Indian superstar was challenged by Sri Lanka's Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage, a former fast bowler, who put in one of the best efforts of his career, throwing a distance of 84.34m, snatching the lead away from the home favourite. Neeraj saw that, and was going to have none of the conditions at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium, Neeraj came in clutch under pressure, as he mostly does, hitting a mammoth distance of 86.18m, propelling himself back into the lead in the third round of the Chopra shows exactly why he's a champion! Brings out his A game in the third round with a massive 86.18m, taking the lead back from Rumesh Pathirage. The crowd is loving it! #NCClassic 2025 #GameOfThrows #CraftingVictories #NeerajChopra Inspire Institute of Sport (@IIS_Vijayanagar) July 5, 2025NEERAJ DOMINATES FROM ROUND 3After his early stumble in the first round, Neeraj Chopra dominated the competition after his 86.18m throw. The winds put a little bit of dampener on the competition as the athletes were constantly forced to switch between headwind and tailwind javelins due to the constantly changing conditions in the recorded 4 legal throws in his own competition, with his best one coming in Round 3. He took the win home by a comfortable margin of little over 1.5m beating his friend, veteran Julius Yego, who recorded his season best at 84.51m. Yego was the most consistent thrower in the competition today, registering 5 legal attempts on surprise package of the competition was most certainly the Sri Lankan, who managed to give veterans Neeraj and Yego a competition in a tricky the day, however, the best of Rumesh and Yego were not able to keep Neeraj away from the gold medal, who put up his most consistent show in Bengaluru on Saturday. ! We have our Top-3 of the the Inaugural #NeerajChopraClassic #NeerajChopraClassic #JavelinThrow Neeraj Chopra Classic (@nc_classic) July 5, 2025NEERAJ CHOPRA'S BEST THROWSx, 82.99m, 86.18m, x, 84.07m, 82.22mSpeaking after the event, Neeraj conceded that he was extremely nervous as an athlete and as an organiser, but was happy with how the event turned out. Neeraj stated in the post match interview that he hoped to add more disciplines to the event and make it a proper athletics competition, which would draw top athletes from the world every WINDS MAKE LIFE DIFFICULTNeeraj has thrown much longer distances before, but the conditions in Bengaluru made it quite tricky for the athletes out there. German legend Thomas Rohler, had one of his throws come down sharply, almost vertically down from the sky, eliminating him from the was evident from the number of foul throws the kind of impact the wind had on the event. There was so much swirling of the wind that by the time an athlete competed their run-up, the direction of the wind had changed inside the stadium. The main contributor to the condition was the structure of the stadium, which had 2 levels of stands bar the direction that the athletes were throwing was not just Rohler who found it tricky on the day. India's Sahil Silwal, Rohit Yadav and Czech Republic's Martin Konecny were eliminated from the competition as well in the first three also mentioned the same after the event, stating that the wind made life extremely difficult for the the end of six rounds of throws, Neeraj's gold was followed by Julius Yego, and Rumesh Pathirage who won silver and bronze the Indians it was Sachin Yadav, who impressed the most in Bengaluru, throwing a distance of 82.33, finishing in the 4th place. Sachin has already made a name for himself on the javelin circuit as the next big thing coming from the subcontinent. His 100 per cent effort in each one of his throws only fuelled that reputation as he grunted after each of his throws. Sachin, although he finished outside of the podium, would take a lot of confidence from this event, that he belongs right at the top of the pile when it comes to the javelin standards. After Neeraj, he will be the one to watch for as India build up for the LA Olympics CHOPRA CLASSIC STANDINGSNeeraj Choprax, 82.99m, 86.18m, x, 84.07m, 82.22mJulius Yego79.97m, 80.07m, 79.73m, 84.51m (SB), x, 82.45mRumesh Pathirage71.19m, 81.90m, 84.34m, x, 80.10m, 77.23mSachin Yadavx, 77.30m, 82.33m, x, 79.40m, 73.45mCurtis Thompson 79.35m, 77.24m, 80.84m, x, 81.50m, xLuiz Mauricio Da Silva75.20m, 80.31m, x, x, xYashvir Singhx, 76.20m, 79.65m, x, x, xCyprian Mrzygodx, 78.46m, 79.04m, x, x, 78.80mEliminated after first 3 roundsSahil Silwal77.48m, 75.55m, xRohit Yadav77.11m, 75.28m, xThomas Rohleradvertisement75.85m, x, xMartin Konecnyx, 71.99m, x- EndsMust Watch
