Ready for Olympic defence, Neeraj Chopra aware, not worried of competition

Neeraj Chopra prepares for Olympic defense with Diamond League training, emphasizing consistency, mental strength, and preparation for competition.

Neeraj Chopra will kick off his Olympic defence year at the Diamond League next month and the world champion is both aware of the pressure of expectations and confident in his own abilities. Ahead of the season opener in Doha, Chopra spoke to select media from his base in Turkey on April 11 about his training so far, the season ahead and the competition.

Excerpts:

I had earlier worked with Spencer (S&C head coach at Inspire Institute of Sports) in 2019 after my elbow injury and surgery and it was very useful. We have been working together for the last 2-3 months, in South Africa earlier and now in Turkey also. The strength and fitness training is mainly before the actual season starts, when javelin-specific training is more in focus, which we have begun now. It has been good, we worked on certain exercises to increase strength.

The training has been good so hopefully, it can happen before the Olympics also but for me, consistency is important. I always try to maintain my level in every tournament before trying to go beyond a certain mark. For consistent performance, consistent training is the key. You have to continue training through the season and not give up completely in off-season also, try not to take too much rest between competitions. Managing your travel, diet and training is very important. Sometimes conditions can be challenging but the goal is to maintain your performance.

In fact, I have been hanging between 88-90m since 2018 and the way Kishore (Jena) has improved, maybe he will cross that mark before me! But whoever does it, it will be good.

The biggest growth is in experience, self-confidence and mental strength. Before Tokyo, I had no major medal and in Diamond League events, not even decent positions. That has changed – I have participated in two World Championships with a silver and a gold, good performances and title in Diamond League and defended Asian Games title. Earlier, it was all about getting a good performance in events; now, there is pressure to be consistent and maintain the position that I have earned. All these have helped motivate me a lot and given the belief that we can do well in tough competitions against top athletes. But I also know that this is my 2nd Olympics so I will have to prepare harder.

Of course there is excitement to get out there and compete. The indoor season actually starts early but throwing events like javelin, which have to be held outdoors only, start a bit late and there is the desire for the wait to get over.