Two-time Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra looks poised to reclaim the Diamond League trophy, banking on another 90m effort — the standout mark of his season — as the prestigious 14-leg series concludes on Thursday.
Chopra participated in two of the four Diamond League javelin throw competitions, placing fourth with 15 points to go to the Finals. On August 16 and August 22, he did not participate in the Silesia and Brussels legs, respectively. The DL trophy was last won by him in 2022. These Finals are open to the top six in the points standings from the four meetings.
The DL Final takes place over two days because there are 32 events, both male and female.
On Wednesday, the city of Switzerland’s Sechselautenplatz will host six street competitions: the men’s and women’s pole vault, the men’s and women’s shot put, the men’s long jump, and the women’s high jump.
However, the remaining 26 events will take place within Letzigrund Stadium on Thursday.
In addition to receiving a DL trophy and prize money ranging from USD 30,000 to USD 50,000, the victor of each event at the Diamond League Final will be proclaimed this year’s champion and receive wild card admission to the World Championships in Tokyo next month.
In the seven-man final, defending champion Anderson Peters of Grenada and Germany’s Julian Weber will face Tokyo Olympics gold medallist and Paris Games silver winner Chopra in an exciting matchup in the men’s javelin.
Simon Wieland of Switzerland was added as the host nation’s entry, and athletes in the top six in the points table—Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad while Tobago, Andrian Mardare of Moldova, and Julius Yego of Kenya, the 2015 world champion—entered the competition.
Although his recent form has not been the finest, Peters is also a two-time world champion. He finished third in Doha with a season-best throw of 85.64 meters thus far.
On May 16, Weber defeated Chopra at the Doha DL with the longest throw of the year, measuring 91.06 meters.
Chopra finished second behind Weber, but he finally broke the 90-meter mark at Doha with a 90.23-meter time. On June 20, the 27-year-old Indian superstar won the Paris leg with a throw of 88.16 meters, while Weber came in second with 87.88 meters.
In the Doha DL, the Indian star’s 90.23-meter throw was the third-longest of the season.
Despite having the second-longest throw of the season (91m), Luiz Mauricio Da Silva has not advanced to the DL Final. This season, just three javelin throwers have been able to surpass the 90-meter mark.
Chopra’s final competition was the NC Classic, which he hosted and won with a throw of 86.18 meters on July 5 in Bengaluru.
In their two DL matches this season, Chopra and the 30-year-old Weber have finished 1-2 each, and it is anticipated that the two will compete for glory in the event.
For Chopra, this year has been quite hectic. At the NC Classic on July 5 in Bengaluru, he fulfilled his aim of hosting and competing in a top-tier tournament in front of home supporters after initially achieving the eagerly anticipated 90-meter throw early in the season.
He will try to win the DL Trophy again on Thursday, which he did in 2022. He was runner-up in 2023 and 2024, losing to Czech Jakub Vadlejch and Peterson, respectively.
Before he defends the World Championships title in Tokyo next month, when the competition will be more formidable, a victory on Thursday would be the ideal prelude and morale boost.
