Sachin Yadav delivered a strong performance, placing fourth with 86.27m. Other top contenders like Arshad Nadeem and Julian Weber also failed to medal. Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago claimed the world champion title.
Tokyo: Team India had an unlikely hero in the 2025 World Athletics Championships, after medal favourite and World Number 2 Neeraj Chopra finished Eighth in the Men’s Javelin Throw final. Rising to the occasion, 25-year-old Sachin Yadav delivered a stunning performance but fell short of a medal position with a best throw of 86.27m. Neeraj Chopra came into the tournament as defending champion, but weather played spoilsport after the fifth round with a best effort of 84.03m left him eighth overall. Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan also made an exit in the fourth round. Both were widely expected to challenge for gold as they entered the competition with their season-best throws. World Number One and German athlete Julian Weber also failed to secure a podium spot. Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago became the new world champion.
First Indian World Champion
Back in 2023, Neeraj Chopra made history by becoming the first Indian to win a World Championships gold medal in javelin, recording a throw of 88.17m in Budapest, while Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem claimed silver with 87.82m, according to Olympics.com. Their rivalry intensified further at the Paris Olympics, where Nadeem outshone Chopra with an Olympic record throw of 92.97m, taking gold, and leaving Chopra with silver. Neeraj Chopra enjoyed a stellar 2025 season, which began with a victory at the Potch Invitational in South Africa. It was followed by a remarkable second-place finish at the Doha Diamond League in May, crossing the 90-metre mark for the first time with a throw of 90.23m. Later that month, he secured second at the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial in Poland before bouncing back with wins at the Paris Diamond League (88.16m) and Ostrava Golden Spike (85.29m). In late August, Chopra continued his consistency with a second-place finish at the Diamond League final in Zurich, throwing 85.01m. Although Germany’s Julian Weber dominated with two throws exceeding 91m, Chopra’s final attempt helped him extend his streak of finishing in the top two to 26 consecutive events.