Missed natural feeling of being in world-class event but staying positive for Tokyo, says Neeraj Chopra

“I did not get good international competitions when I wanted and there had to be several changes in training and competition schedule.”

Touted as one of India’s strongest bets for an Olympic medal, star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra on Sunday said his build-up to the Games has been quite challenging given the lack of competitive exposure but he is trying to stay positive for the big event. Chopra said he has missed the “natural feeling” of being in a world-class field, except for one occasion, in the run up to the Games which open on July 23. That one time was the Kuortane Games event in Finland on June 26 where he won a bronze with a performance of 86.79m in a star-studded field comprising, among others, Olympics gold favourite German Johannes Vetter, who won the event with a massive throw of 93.59m.