On Saturday, Neeraj Chopra won the men's javelin with a best throw of 87.58 meters, giving India its first Olympic gold medal in athletics.
Chopra, the 2018 Commonwealth champion, took the lead with a throw of 87.03 meters on his first try, a distance no other competitor attained in the final, and won India's first gold of the Tokyo Games in front of his ecstatic teammates and coaches.
❝It feels Incredible❞
Chopra told Reuters, "It feels incredible." "It's a wonderful moment for me and my country since this is our first Olympic medal in a long time, and we have won gold in athletics for the first time, so it's a proud moment for myself and my country."
Chopra thought his Games were on the right track this week with a qualifying round best throw of 86.65, but he never considered gold a foregone conclusion.
"I threw pretty well in the qualification round, so I knew I could do even better in the final. I had no idea it would be gold, but I am overjoyed "he stated
After Abhinav Bindra won the 10-meter air rifle event at the 2008 Olympics, Chopra became only the second Indian to win an individual Olympic gold medal.