Neeraj the pied piper as India hit high notes in javelin

The roar. You know which part of the Kalinga Stadium it was coming from. Javelin in India is no longer an event quietly unfolding. Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra has single-handedly lifted it to a marquee event in Indian athletics. There's a certain pride now in holding the spear. You can see that on their beaming faces, chests puffed up as they assemble like gladiators under the lights, waiting to showcase their skill, power and technique. And make the javelin soar into the night sky.

PREMIUM

At the Inter-state athletics championships in Bhubaneswar, it was one big exhibition of India's growing prowess in the event. The build-up to the most important domestic meet was spectacular. Five Indian throwers have hurled the spear past 80m this year.

Besides Neeraj, there is DP Manu among the world's 10 best throws this season. Rohit Yadav is 14th and Kishore Jena is 17th in that table. Sachin Yadav (80.27m), Vikrant Malik (81.81m in December), Anuj Kalera (79.04m) and Tokyo Olympian Shivpal Singh are in the chasing pack. It's been cut-throat competition among the Indian throwers where every centimetre counts.

They were gunning for World Championships and Asian Games spots and they hurled the javelin farther and farther. With Neeraj making the cut for the Budapest Worlds, scheduled from August 19, through a wildcard as a Diamond League champion, it has opened up the possibility of three more Indian throwers making the cut. They have grabbed the opportunity with both hands and improved their rankings on the back of some solid performances. Four Indians in javelin at the world championships will be a sight to behold.

Rohit has trained with Neeraj at Loughborough High Performance Centre and at Northwest Potchefstroom, South Africa. Coming back to India, he won the Federation Cup title in Ranchi last month with a personal best of 83.40m. He carried his form into the inter-state meet. His first throw of 83.28m remained unbeatable on Monday.

It was by no means expected to be a cakewalk for Rohit. Kishore Jena threatened to surpass him. Competing before his home crowd and family, the Odisha thrower cleared 80m twice (82.87m, 82.30m), eventually settling for second. Shivpal also had two 80m-plus throws while coming third (81.96m). The promising Manu was subdued, having set high standards for himself. He reached only 76.85m when his season's best is 84.33m -- second only to Chopra among Indian throwers -- that has lifted his world ranking to ninth.

Chopra's pep talk

Rohit was boosted after talking to Chopra before coming to the competition. “We spoke in the morning and he encouraged me. He said 'give your best, I will watch you'. I came here to give my personal best but the runway was fast and I found it difficult to control my speed,” he said.

“I got to learn so much training with Neeraj. Just watching him go through his routine is motivating. He has all the titles (save the world championships), but he is so serious about his workout. The effort he puts to keep himself ahead of other throwers is incredible.”

Rohit came as a promising talent and is now showing signs of blooming. He competed at the World Championships and Birmingham CWG last year. This year, he has worked on his runway speed and increased his weight to 83kg.

“My body weight used to be 79kg. I have focused on weight training during off-season to gain strength. I was looking to go past 85m today.”

Others too are striving to hit the world championships qualifying standard of 85.20m. In case they don’t get there, they will be looking to seal their spots through world rankings.

The competition at home is so intense that nobody can afford to take any meet lightly. Manu would know. He had 80m-plus throws in three competitions before inter-state and his expected duel with Rohit had sparked a lot of interest. However, one bad day and he might miss the bus for the Asian Games. Manu, 23, looked frustrated as he tried in vain till his final attempt to breach the Games qualifying standard of 78.23m. But he had to settle for a modest 76.85m. World Championships though should be within his grasp considering that he has already placed himself high in the rankings ladder.

“You have six-seven throwers in the same range. You never know when the big throw is coming from whom. So, you have to push yourself in training and in competition to keep your place in the team. Jena was fantastic today,” said Rohit, who is likely to be alongside Chopra at the Asian Games.

A late bloomer at 27, Jena has thrown his hat in the mix only this year. He is the most improved thrower in recent times.

His best in 2021 was 76.41m, which he bettered to 78.05m last year. This season he has been on a roll, first surpassing 80m at Indian GP in March, and then on Monday in Bhubaneswar getting two of his best throws (82.87m, 82.30m).

Hailing from a village near Puri, Jena was at the Sports Hostel in Kalinga Stadium since 2015. Though he is yet to compete internationally, he feels ready. “I've been doing javelin for a long time. I have the experience. It is a very technical sport and takes time for one to grasp it. You need to train under good coaches. It was only when I was called for the national camp in 2021 and trained under Samarjeet Singh Malhi that I was able to learn and progress,” says Jena.

“Neeraj’s Olympic gold in Tokyo was the biggest inspiration for me.”

Rohit said a foreign coach would help. AFI chief Adille Sumariwalla said they are desperately looking for two foreign coaches in javelin, but are yet to finalise one.

“Foreign coaches are good in technical aspects. I could see the difference when I am with Neeraj and guided by (German expert) Klaus Bartonietz. It will definitely benefit us if we have foreign coaches,” said Rohit.

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