Neeraj Chopra, a renowned javelin thrower, will compete in the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, next month, and excitement is growing about his chances of winning a medal.

 

One of Chopra’s lofty goals for this year is the Diamond League, a series of one-day tournaments lasting only two hours each that were launched in 2010 to promote athletics around the world. Men’s javelin is featured at four of the 12 venues for the Diamond League cycle, which concludes with the final in Zurich. The athlete with the highest points wins a diamond trophy and $40,000 for their efforts. 

 

Chopra’s Diamond League schedule wouldn’t be complete without a visit to the principality on the Mediterranean coast, thus skipping it would reduce his chances of winning the league. According to Chopra, he will decide whether to go to Monaco based on the how his body feels in Birmingham.

 

Chopra should first win the Diamond League in Stockholm on Thursday in order to get to this year’s final in Zurich. In the Swedish capital’s Olympic Stadium, he gets the chance to check a box. He has attempted to win a Diamond League contest seven times before to failing. He qualified twice for the final, placing seventh (83.30 metres) in 2017 and fourth (85.87 metres) in 2018.

 

A win in his first Diamond League tournament in four years would be the perfect warm-up for the World Athletics Championships.