When did Neeraj Chopra last finish outside podium in men's javelin throw before 2025?

Neeraj Chopra finished eighth at the World Athletics Championships 2025 in Tokyo.

There is a reason India always pins its highest hopes on Neeraj Chopra whenever he steps onto the field at athletics tournaments.

That reason is simple: for more than 2,500 days, over eight years, India’s javelin ace never returned without a medal. And for the past four years, he has been unbeatable at the world stage, finishing either first or second.

But on Thursday at the World Athletics Championships 2025, that remarkable streak came to a crashing halt. The 27-year-old could manage only eighth place in Tokyo with the best throw of 84.03m.

It happened in the same city where, in 2021, he lifted India’s first-ever Olympic gold in athletics and transformed javelin into a one of the mainstream sports across the nation.

For Neeraj, this was more than just a rare slip. It felt almost unthinkable, because such low finishes have been absent from his illustrious career since he burst onto the global stage.

Neeraj Chopra fails to defend his title at World Championships!! ❌💔After struggling all evening, Chopra finished 8th with a best attempt of 84.03m.#WCHTokyo25 #JavelinThrow pic.twitter.com/osTM5OPY1e

— Khel Now (@KhelNow) September 18, 2025

When did Neeraj Chopra last finish outside the podium before 2025?

The last time Chopra finished outside the top three was way back in September 2018 at the IAAF Continental Cup in Ostrava, where he ended sixth. That day, he had an 85m+ throw that was ruled foul, and the best mark he could register was only 80.24m.

Afterward, the then-20-year-old said: “Everything was going well but it happened with me for the first time that a very good throw of 85+ went for a foul. I made a mistake, but I will take it forward and learn from this.”

And learn he did. From that moment, Neeraj went on a journey that changed Indian athletics forever. Before the podium-less finish at IAAF Continental Cup 2018, he had it at the Doha Diamond League the same year.

Also Read: Neeraj Chopra’s podium streak ends after eighth place finish at World Athletics Championships 2025

Neeraj finished fourth despite throwing 87.43m, in a battle ground that was dominated by Germans Thomas Rohler (91.78m), Johannes Vetter (91.56m), and Andreas Hofmann (90.08m). Back then, the 90m mark still seemed a dream for the Haryana boy.

But the dream became reality. Ironically, it was on the same soil of Doha, in 2025, that Neeraj finally breached the barrier with a throw of 90.23m, only to finish behind another German, Julian Weber, who struck gold with 91.06m.

Also Read: Neeraj Chopra’s top five career best throws in men’s javelin

Between 2018 and now, Chopra went on to collect six Diamond League wins, eight runner-up finishes, and not once did he settle for third-place finish.

He also won gold medal at the World Athletics Championships in 2023 and silver in 2022. At the Paris Olympics 2024 he bagged silver.

Chopra’s name became synonymous with podium finishes in the nation, often regarded as the Golden boy of India.

That is why Tokyo 2025 cuts so deep. For the first time in four years, Neeraj stood outside the first or second place.

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