Who is Neeraj Chopra and How He Won Gold Medal in Olympics 2020

The goosebumps, the thrill, the ultimate exhilaration on a golden win! This is what India witnessed with the historic win of Neeraj Chopra! The young prodigy ended India’s 121 year old wait for an athletics medal. The star javelin thrower with his 87.58 m javelin throw gave India its seventh medal. With this phenomenal win, he joined Abhinav Bindra in the list of Indian Gold Medalists (Olympics). 

Neeraj Chopra

Let us go through the journey for the ‘golden boy’ and cherish the pride. It is really an incredible journey to look up to.

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Personal Details

NameNeeraj Chopra
NicknameNijju
Date of Birth24 December, 1997
Age ( as of 2020)23 years
BirthplaceKhandra Village, Haryana
Zodiac SignCapricorn
NationalityIndian
HometownKhandra Village
CollegeDAV, Chandigarh
Education QualificationGraduation
Ethnicity Ror Maratha
Food Habit Turned Non-Vegetarian
Marital StatusUnmarried
Religion Hindu
CastePunjabi

Neeraj Chopra Early Life

Neeraj has a beautiful story to share about his progression from Panipat to the Olympics Podium. He was born in Haryana on 24 December, 1997. He has a joint family of 17 members. His father Satish Kumar Chopra is a farmer. Neeraj garnered a lot of affection and attention in his big family. As a child he was obese. When he was 11 years old, his weight was around 80 kg.

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Neeraj Chopra Family Details 

ParentsFather- Satish Kumar ChopraMother- Saroj Chopra
SiblingsSisters: Sangeeta and Sarita

Neeraj Chopra Career Details

In his early days he was passionate towards sports like Kabaddi, cricket and volleyball. He moved to Panipat Stadium with the purpose of weight loss. This was a turning point.

While running he used to see some of his seniors performing the javelin throws. This caught his attention. 

From here he decided to try hands at the javelin throw and the rest is history! From there on Neeraj worked tremendously hard to train himself.

His performance in the International Arena started in 2013, where he finished 19th in the IAAF World Youth Championship. He kept working on his game religiously.

In 2016 Neeraj won the gold at the IAAF World Youth Championship to become the first ever Indian Athlete to do so.

Neeraj Chopra Achievements and Accomplishments

Let us sail through the ocean of accomplishments of Neeraj Chopra.

Gold Medals

  • 2016: South Asian Games in Guwahati, India
  • 2016: World U20 Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland
  • 2017:Asian Championships in Bhubaneswar, India
  •  2018: CommonWealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia
  • 2018: Sotteville Athletics Meet in France
  • 2018: Asian Games in Jakarta 
  • 2018: Savo Games in Finland
  • 2021: Tokyo Olympics 2020

Silver Medals

  • 2016: Asian Junior Championships in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • 2017: Asian Grand Prix Series, Jinhua in China
  • 2017: Asian Grand Prix Series, Jiaxing in China
  • 2018: Offenburg Speerwurf Meeting in Offenburg, Germany

Bronze Medals

  • 2017: Asian Grand Prix Series, Taiwan

How did Neeraj win the Gold Medal?

 Neeraj scripted the history. But how did the gold medallist keep his journey this astounding? Let us go through the highlights from the Olympics 2020.

  • In the Men’s final javelin throw, Neeraj covered 87.03 mts in his first throw.
  • He defeated Germany’s Johannes Vetter, who finished second with a throw of 85.64 mts.
  • Neeraj qualified for the Tokyo Olympics with a throw of 86.65 mts. This attempt was best among all the athletes present. It helped Neeraj to qualify for the finals.

Profession Details

ProfessionJavelin ThrowerJunior Commissioned Officer
Height180cm
Weight86 Kg
Eye Colour Black
Hair ColourBlack
Coach(es)Garry CalvertWerner DanielsUwe HohnRaj kumar

FAQs

When did Neeraj join the Indian Army?

Neeraj joined it in 2017.

Where was Neeraj Chopra’s best throw?

It was in Tokyo Olympics

Is Neeraj Second Indian to win a gold in Olympics?

Yes, he is the second Indian after Abhinav Bindra.

What is the designation of Neeraj in the army?

He joined the army as a Junior Commissioned Officer.

What is the weight of Javelin?

It is around 1.8 pounds.

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