India’s ex-Olympic javelin champ Neeraj Chopra ends season early after ligament tear, to miss Asiad
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India’s javelin star Neeraj Chopra at the World Athletics Diamond League meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland on Aug 21, when he threw 88.05m for second place.
PHOTO: EPA
- Neeraj Chopra has ended his 2026 season early due to a ligament tear, and will miss the upcoming Asian Games.
- He has a history of injuries, including a back disc issue that required nine months of rehabilitation.
- The 28-year-old aims to recover fully and return stronger, despite recent setbacks in his athletic performance.
AI generated
BENGALURU – Former Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra has ended his 2026 season early after sustaining a ligament tear during training, the javelin thrower announced in an Instagram post on Aug 29, three weeks before the Asian Games.
The 28-year-old Indian, who took gold at the Tokyo Olympics and won silver in Paris, placed second in the Lausanne Diamond League with a throw of 88.05 metres last week, but suffered the injury soon after, getting sidelined for a long period for the second time in a year.
“After discussions with my doctor and team, we’ve decided that I will sit out the rest of this season,” Chopra posted.
“It’s disappointing, especially because I felt close to finding my rhythm. But as they say, setbacks are a part of the journey.”
Chopra, who had been dealing with lower back discomfort since 2023, set a national record of 90.23m in May 2025 at the Doha Diamond League meeting.
But he aggravated a disc injury in September during training. Later that month, he went into a nine-month rehabilitation period after the Tokyo World Championships, in which he ended eighth with 84.03m, and returned in June 2026.
He took silver with a relatively modest 85.83m at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in July and has qualified for next weekend’s Diamond League finals in Brussels.
As the two-time defending champion, he was a medal hope for India at the Sept 19-Oct 4 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.
“My focus now is on recovering well and coming back even stronger,” Chopra added. REUTERS
