Interaction with Neeraj Chopra: Facing fitness challenge, World Championships and why confidence is key

The reigning Olympics champion made a victorious return from injury with a win at the Lausanne Diamond League.

Reigning Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra was back with a bang, after a brief break due to injury, winning the Lausanne Diamond League on June 30 (Friday). He did not have a good start in Lausanne but held his nerve and came back strong in the second half to produce 87.66m thereby leapfrogging Julian Weber to the top spot. The conditions weren't easy either with splashes of rain and Chopra had to adapt to and perform in his comeback. This was also Neeraj Chopra's second competition of the season, with his season opener coming in the Doha Diamond League.

The golden man spoke on his return from injury and the preparations ahead of World Championships in a press interaction.

Comeback from Injury

Neeraj Chopra started the season by clinching the top spot in the Doha Diamond League and was all set to take part in three Continental 'A' meets (FBK Games, Paavo Nurmi games, and Ostrava Golden Spike) in June. Unfortunately, a muscle strain ruled him out for almost a month, but he was confident of making a comeback in the Lausanne leg of Diamond League.

"Injury was always on back on my mind and during the competition I asked myself if I can push for 100 percent. I was completely fine during the training sessions but going into the competition with wet conditions — I had few doubts in my mind. I tried to make a mark in the first four throws and then understood that I can go past the barrier. My coach also insisted me to increase the speed in the runway in the fifth which helped me achieve the top spot.

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"I might have gained more fat with the body weight going up by 2kg or so. The training for the past few weeks wasn't that intense and that might be the reason. Also, the runup wasn't slow due to this, rather it was with respect to my mind. I can run fast to my 100 percent but the block (blocking leg) needs to be perfect during the release, else it can cause injury.

"My coach Klaus Bartonietz through his research said that the javelin thrower loads nearly 10 times of his body weight on the blocking foot. I can increase my speed but simultaneously need to have control as well."

Thoughts on initial setback at Lausanne Diamond League

In most of the competitions Neeraj Chopra has participated, he has always had his best throws in the first or second attempt (barring a few). At Lausanne he had different plans and clinched the top spot in the fifth attempt.

"No, I don't plan to give my best at the start itself rather I always try give my hundred percent in all the attempts. I cannot always get to the 88m or 89m mark and in between can lose some distance. As mentioned, I have achieved my best in the initial throws but if I don't then always try to catch up and motivate myself to stick around till the final attempt.

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"My first throw wasn't that good (close to 80m), so I deliberately crossed the line. Also wanted my first mark to be far from what I managed as that adds positivity for the further throws.

"Last year (at Stockholm Diamond League), I threw 89.94m initially but Anderson Peters came back strong in the next few attempts to breach the 90m mark. Also, in my last meet at Lausanne a few days back, Julian Weber attempted his best throw in the final attempt and was close to getting to my mark. So, it is not always about the first few attempts rather we try hard to push ourselves till the final attempt and get the best result possible.

"My strategy has always been to get the best throw as soon as possible. In particular, I need to keep warming up in between my throws. In other events like long distance running, you need to play strategically both physically and mentally by not allowing the other athletes to move ahead of you but here I always have to give my best. My take is to always stay positive and keep warming up in the competition."

Injury Management

"Everything was going fine at the start of the season but in sports we cannot except the timing of injury. With TOPS, SAI and AFI's support, I have a great team who take good care of me. I have to be away from injuries else everything is going going fine. My main focus is to be 100 percent fit for the World Championships both physically and mentally which helps me to perform to my best."

Preparations ahead of World Championships

"My aim is to stay fresh ahead of the World Championships. I already have 16 Diamond League points (after winning the Doha and Lausanne leg) and I think this should be enough for me to get into the Diamond League final. But if we think I can take part in tournament in between by staying injury free, then will definitely give it a thought. Fitness will be my main focus ahead of the Worlds and I will look to stay fit.

"There are tournaments lined up every two weeks and next up we have the Monaco Diamond League which is a bit far away (approx. three weeks). If I think that I can compete with good fitness, then will have a look at it else the main focus as I said before will be the World Championships."

Satisfied with performance at Lausanne Diamond League?

"Finishing first in any field always feels good. There was a good amount of head wind with the conditions not easy either. Achieving the top spot while playing alongside world class athletes is always special no matter at what distance I get there (85m or 89m). Every athlete tries to give his best and if I am finishing first then it is special.

"Getting to the 90m mark requires good time and conditions. There is no pressure from my side to get to the 90m mark rather win the competition. I am working on my fitness and with good conditions, I will definitely get to that mark soon. The 2022 season was one of my best as I broke my National Record twice and breached 88m mark consistently. This season too has been good, and I will look to perform better going forward."

Staying Confident

"Confidence is very important whenever we compete, and it always helps to me to stay calm during major competitions. I am competing against the world's best throwers who have already breached the 90m mark and if they can't throw to their best then look at how challenging the conditions are. It is through confidence that I able to perform better.

"To be honest, confidence comes from training and fitness. If the fitness is not up to the mark, then I will not be able to perform better which was the case at the World Championships last year after the fourth throw where I had a groin strain. Both mind and body (physicality) need to go hand-in-hand else it becomes tough."

Challenges of adapting to different conditions

"Most of the tournaments I play are in Europe along with training. The problem creeps in when I shift from hot to cold conditions and vice versa. I adapt better to the hotter conditions as I have stayed in Patiala for long time, so it is easier. During Tokyo Olympics too the conditions were hot, and the European athletes faced difficulties there. On the contrary, we face face issues in cold conditions as we have to keep ourselves warm."

Playing alongside Arshad Nadeem at Asian Games

"Wo aa hi jaata hai India-Pakistan wala (India-Pakistan clash). Arshad Nadeem is good athlete but I dont think anything special while competing against him but try to give my best. I will try to keep things simple at the Asian Games and perform to my best. Arshad Nadeem was injured recently and hopefully he remains fit. We will try to push each other hard which will ultimately get the best out of us."