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Tag: Neeraj Chopra

  • Neeraj Chopra At Federation Cup 2024 Athletics LIVE Streaming: Where To Watch National Federation Senior Athletics Competition 2024 Live In India | Other

    India’s javelin throw ace Neeraj Chopra is all set to make his mark at the National Federation Senior Athletics Competition 2024 which will begin at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, Odisha on Sunday. The Olympic gold medalist started his season with a second-place finish at the Doha Diamond League on Friday. He will now compete in a domestic event in India for the first time since winning the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

    The lineup for javelin at the 27th edition of the Federation Cup also includes Asian Games silver medalist Kishore Jena. Neeraj will appear on the runway in the javelin throw event on May 15.

    In the other events, national record holder Jeswin Aldrin will be in action in the men’s long jump. With the Olympic qualification window approaching its deadline on June 30, Jeswin will be aiming to breach the Paris 2024 long jump qualification standard of 8.27m.

    Jeswin set the national record at 8.42m at the Indian Open Jumps Competition in March 2023. But since then he has not breached the entry standard for the upcoming Summer Games since the qualification period began on July 1 last year. In 2024, he is yet to cross the 8m mark. Murali Sreeshankar breached the qualification mark in the men’s long jump but got ruled out for the entire season due to a knee injury.

    Two-time Asian Games champion Tajinderpal Singh Toor will be eyeing to defend his gold medal in the men’s shot put event. Toor holds the national record of 21.49m in the event. He needs to register a throw of 21.50m to meet the quota for Paris.

    Amoj Jacob and Muhammad Ajmal, who are a part of the Indian men’s 4x400m relay team that secured an Olympic quota at the World Athletics Relays in the Bahamas last week, will feature in the men’s 400m race.

    Asian Games champion Rajesh Ramesh will also take part in the 400m event. Rajesh won the gold medal in men’s 400m at the Federation Cup 2023 by clocking 45.75s. The Olympic qualification mark is set at 45s.

    Similarly, Jyothika Sri Dandi, MR Poovamma and Subha Venkatesan, part of the women’s 4x400m relay team that secured an Olympics quota for India in the Bahamas, will compete in the women’s 400m. Asian Games medalist Vithya Ramraj will also compete in the Federation Cup at Bhubaneswar.

    In the men’s triple jump event, Abdulla Aboobacker, the reigning Asian champion and a Commonwealth Games silver medalist, will compete against the national record holder Praveen Chithravel. Aboobacker is the defending champion at the Federation Cup.

    Shaili Singh will need to surpass her mentor Anju Bobby George’s national record of 6.83 in the women’s long jump to book her berth in the upcoming Olympics qualification mark (6.86m).

    Where to watch the Federation Cup 2024?

    The live events of the 2024 Federation Cup will be available to stream online at the official YouTube channel of Athletic Federation of India.

  • Neeraj Chopra Reacts To Broadcasters Not Showing Him On Big Screen Or TV During World Cup Final, Says ‘I Want Them To…’ | Other

    India’s greatest Track and Field athlete Neeraj Chopra was in the stands of the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad to watch the World Cup final between India and Australia in November 19. While the broadcasters showed a host of celebrities from Bollywood and other film industries of the country. who attended the game on the big screen at the ground and on TV, Neeraj was not even shown once. The camera at the ground failed to recognize or spot India’s most decorated sportsperson in the last five years.

    Also Read | WI’s Shai Hope Says THIS MS Dhoni Advice Helped Him Chase Down Target Vs England In 1st ODI

    The 25-year-old has now reacted to the snub by the cameramen at the stadium. In an interview with the Indian Express, Neeraj spoke on how he felt when the likes of Shah Rukh Khan, Ranveer Singh were continuously shown in the big screen and he was not. As expected, Neeraj came up with a very Neeraj-like response, saying that he does think too much about these things. However, Neeraj said, not showing his matches on TV troubles him.

    “I want them to show me when I compete. When I participate in the Diamond League they don’t telecast it properly. Woh cheez hai asli (that’s the real deal). At that time, they only show highlights. I went to Ahmedabad. just to watch the match and I thoroughly enjoyed it.


    “I would have obviously enjoyed it more had India won, but I had a good time in the stands. I never wanted the camera to pan towards me, that thought didn’t even cross my head,” said Neeraj.

    Who Is Neeraj Chopra’s Favorite Fast Bowler?

    Neeraj was also quizzed about his favorite fast bowler in the Indian team and he took the name of Jasprit Bumrah. The dynamics of fast bowling and javelin throw are almost the same. The athlete runs in at fast pace, stops and then delivers the ball/throws the javelin. Neeraj finds Bumrah’s bowling action quite unique and also had an advice for India’s leading fast bowler. Neeraj advised Bumrah to lengthen his run-up as doing it will help him extract more pace.

    The star javelin thrower has won almost everything that is there to be won for a Track and Field athlete. From Olympics gold to World title to Diamond League trophy, Neeraj has it all. However, there is one small dream of his which is still unfulfilled, which is to participate and win the top honors at an international event in India. Neeraj hopes that global event is hosted soon.

  • Stadium to be built in Neeraj Chopra’s native village: Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday announced that a stadium will be built in Olympic gold-medallist Neeraj Chopra’s native village in Panipat.

    Making the announcement after inaugurating a cooperative sugar mill in Panipat, the chief minister said Neeraj Chopra, who belongs to Haryana, has made the country and the state proud by winning an Olympic gold medal last year.

    “A stadium would be built in Neeraj Chopra’s village for Rs 10 crore,” he announced.

    Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra’s native village Khandra is in Panipat.

    Last year, Chopra became the first Indian to win a gold medal in Olympic track and field.

    Khattar said that Haryana has become a sports hub and players from the state have brought laurels at various national and international level sporting events.

    Haryana is also giving the highest prize money to its players, he said.

    Khattar also said the Khelo India Youth Games-2021, which had to be postponed multiple times due to the COVID-19 pandemic, will be organised in the state from June 4 to June 13.

    Addressing a gathering after inaugurating the sugar mill, Khattar said Haryana’s biggest sugar mill has been made functional and farmers will not have to transport sugarcane to neighbouring states.

    Ensuring the well-being of each farmer is the utmost priority of the state government, the chief minister said.

    Haryana is the only state to procure 14 crops at minimum support price and is paying the highest procurement rate of sugarcane in the country, he added.

  • 2021: The Year of the Mask, raging inequality, Neeraj Chopra and Fahadh Faasil

    By Online Desk

    The Year of the Mask, it again was.

    The rich became richer and inequality became starker amidst the pandemic. 2750 billionaires now own more than half the wealth on the planet. Worrisome? You decide.

    A brutal Covid delta wave left India gasping like never before. Officially, we have lost almost a half a million lives to the dreaded disease. A semblance of normality returned towards the latter half of the year with the vaccinate India mission proceeding at a fast clip. At the end of 2021 when Vax was crowned the word of the year by the Oxford dictionary, India had over 60% of its population double jabbed. We are now heading into boosters territory and better prepared hopefully, though Omicron looms in the wings.

    ALSO READ | First Delta and now Omicron, Karnataka patient beats COVID-19 twice in a year

    The year will also be remembered as the one in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi decided to yield to the protesting farmers who held firm in their demands during the raging pandemic – unflinching and unbowed. Was it the elections in UP that led to the government repealing the three farm laws as most experts stated? “We couldn’t convince a section of farmers despite our best efforts,” the PM admitted in his concession speech.

    Lawyer-activist Sudha Bharadwaj, an accused in the highly controversial Elgar Parishad case, went on to be finally released on ‘defaul bail’ in December after over three years in prison. Reason: The Mumbai High Court held that she could only have been detained for 90 days without a chargeheet being filed! A case of the wheels of justice grinding slowly in her case at least.

    The bail applications of eight other fellow activists detained along with her were only rejected as they had not filed for ‘default bail’. One of these activists Rona Wilson was among those whose phones a forensic analysis by Amnesty International revealed was infected with the “total-access” Pegasus spyware. The Pegasus revelations raised several disturbing questions on possible state surveillance and is now subject to a Supreme Court ordered inquiry.

    Around the middle of 2021, we lost our tragedy king, that great actor all of India looked up to – Dilip Kumar. Mohammed Yusuf Khan was 98 when he breathed his last on July 7, 2021. “Given my temperament, when I have either been dubbed a tragedian or a comedian, I have always felt that they are talking about someone else. Because I think I’m a bit of everything – mujh mein sab ka thoda thoda sa hai,” Dilip saab once told the Filmfare magazine. Indeed!

    ALSO READ | To sum up in a word, 2021 was wack!

    Nedumudi Venu was another complete actor who departed from our midst in the year that was. Even PM Modi took to twitter to condole the death of the one-of-a-kind artiste. “Shri Nedumudi Venu was a versatile actor, who could fill life into diverse roles across many genres. He was also a prolific writer and was passionate about theatre. His passing away is a loss to the world of films and culture. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti,” he tweeted.  

    Puneeth Rajkumar’s turned out to be a death that shocked everyone. The much-loved, gracious and fitness-exercise conscious ‘Power Star’ was only 46 when he died of a sudden cardiac arrest on October 29.  

    #PuneethRajkumar pic.twitter.com/j9iRXhINp8
    — Danish Sait (@DanishSait) October 29, 2021
    In sports, the year began with the Indian cricket team breaching Fortress Gabba and clinching the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2-1 — in Australia.

    A bigger golden moment was soon to follow. On August 7, 2021, Neeraj Chopra, all of 23, did what the great Milkha Singh and PT Usha could not, becoming the first Indian to win a gold medal in track and field. Chopra would go on to dedicate the medal to Milkha Singh, who passed away on June 18, noting that he was only fulfilling the late legend’s wish.

    WATCH |

    2021 was also when Kane Williamson further underlined that good guys can be winners. He and his New Zealand team won the World Championship. The heartbreak that Indian fans endured after losing the final was somewhat lessened by the fact that the sporting Kiwis were the victors.

    It was the year too when the original Kane Williamson – Rahul Dravid – made a return to Team India as the coach. We know he is no Indira Nagar ka goonda, but Mr Nice Guy’s firmly competitive streak and his technical mastery should be to Team India’s advantage as they look to scale greater heights in the years to come.

    The other notable sporting moments came from Novak Djokovic, who joined Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal at Mount 20 Tennis Slams, Max Verstappen, who pipped seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton to the Formula 1 title on the last lap of the season, and Lionel Messi, who won the Ballon D’Or for the seventh time.

    As for entertainment, there was no dearth of it amidst the pandemic. OTT platforms continued to gain in prominence and more of India began to discover the depth of the talent in Southern cinema.

    Fahadh Faasil’s incandescent brilliance lit up many homes. He was the Malik of the year as far as actors were concerned.

    Tovino Thomas went on to become the ultimate desi superhero for many others towards the fag end of the year.

    ALSO READ | Joji Movie Review: A chilling, Coen-esque crime drama

    Scoring on behalf of the over-40 actors was Suriya Sivakumar with his star turns in Soorarai Pottru and Jai Bhim.

    And then there were the songs.

    The composer of the year — and this was the pick of Avinash Ramachandran from our movies team while reviewing Tamil songs — was Santhosh Narayanan. Four films and compositions that spanned almost the entire spectrum. We could not agree more!

  • Pune stadium to be named after Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Neeraj Chopra

    By ANI

    PUNE: A stadium in the premises of Army Sports Institute in Pune is to be named after Tokyo Olympics Gold medalist Neeraj Chopra.

    The stadium will be named ‘Neeraj Chopra Army Sports Stadium’ in Pune Cantonment.

    The official naming ceremony of the stadium is scheduled for August 23 and will be carried out by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. Singh will be accompanied by the Army chief General M M Narvane and Lieutenant Governer JS Nain on this tour.

    On his visit, Singh will facilitate the other sixteen Olympians and will be carrying out a naming ceremony of the stadium. He will also be addressing the troops and will interact with budding sportsmen.

    Neeraj’s historic golden throw in the Olympics has been listed as one of the 10 magical moments of athletics (track and field) in the Tokyo Olympics by World Athletics.

    He has been felicitated by the Indian Government, the Sports Ministry, the Athletic Federation of India as well as the Indian Army post his return. 

  • Rajnath likely to name stadium after Neeraj Chopra during Pune visit

    By PTI

    PUNE: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will visit Pune’s Defence Institute of Advanced Technology (DIAT) and Army Sports Institute (ASI) on August 23 and is likely to name a facility here after Olympic javelin gold medalist Neeraj Chopra, officials said on Friday.

    A release from the Defence PRO said Singh, during his visit to Army Sports Institute, is likely to name the stadium in the campus as ‘Neeraj Chopra Army Sports Institute, Pune Cantonment’.

    Chopra, a Naik Subedar in the Army who won gold in the javelin competition in the recently-concluded Tokyo Olympics, had himself trained at the ASI.

    As per the release, Singh will felicitate 16 Olympians from the Services during his visit to ASI, apart from addressing troops and sportsmen training at the premier facility. At DIAT, Singh will chair the institute’s general body meeting and interact with M. Tech and PhD students apart from inaugurating a new building in the campus.

  • Watched flag hoisting ceremony on TV, now personally going there: Neeraj Chopra

    By ANI

    NEW DELHI: Indian Olympic Winners left the Ashoka Hotel in New Delhi for the national flag hoisting ceremony at Red Fort on India’s 75th Independence Day today.

    Javelin thrower Subedar Neeraj Chopra, India’s first-ever Gold Medallist in track and field, who is among thirty-two Olympic winners who have been invited to participate in the 75th Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort, said: “Earlier, we used to watch flag hoisting ceremony on TV and now we are personally going there. It’s a new experience. We hadn’t won a gold medal in individual sports for so long. I felt good that the country felt proud because of me.”

    Around 240 Olympians, support staff, and SAI and sports federation officials have also been invited to grace the Gyan Path in front of the Ramparts. In Tokyo, India recorded its best-ever medal haul in the recently concluded Olympics by bagging a total of seven medals – one Gold, two silver, and four bronze.

    The Nation is celebrating ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’, marking the 75th year of Independence from the foreign rule.

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead the Independence Day celebrations from Red Fort in New Delhi on Sunday. He will hoist the national flag and deliver the customary address to the nation from the ramparts of Red Fort.

    Security has been tightened in the national capital for the 75th Independence Day celebrations on Sunday. Counter-drone technology has been deployed in sensitive areas in the national capital to thwart any untoward incident.

  • Neeraj Chopra impact: Tokyo gold sparks admission rush at sport schools

    By Express News Service

    CHANDIGARH, LUCKNOW, BHOPAL,RANCHI: Naseem Ahmed is flooded with calls. He is an athletics coach. Neeraj Chopra was under his tutelage at Haryana’s Panchkula Stadium.

    The javelin thrower’s gold medal at Tokyo Olympics has sparked a sudden interest in athletics. Parents are calling up Ahmed and asking how to enrol their children at the training centre.

    “In the last week, after Neeraj qualified for the final, there have been around 100 requests. It increased after he won gold. This morning, we received around 50 requests from parents. A majority of them are for javelin. Some said they want their children to take up any track and field event. Most of them are from rural areas. There is a sudden surge in enthusiasm for athletics,” said Ahmed.

    It is the same at Lucknow’s KD Singh Babu Stadium which houses an athletics training centre, Surjit Hockey Academy in Jalandhar, MP Women’s Hockey Academy in Gwalior, Women’s Hockey Academy in Ajmer and Girls Hockey Training Centre in Jharkhand’s Simdega.

    Wrestling akhadas are also reporting a rise in admission enquiries. Even though Indians did not win medals in shooting and archery, these sports are also drawing attention.

    “My phone has been ringing continuously. Everyone wants their children to be an athlete, which is a very good sign for Indian athletics,” says VR Varun, secretary of Lucknow Athletics Association.

    Budding athletes reside in the hostels of KD Singh Babu Stadium.

    Since Saturday when Neeraj claimed gold, there have been numerous calls for information on admission in javelin throw and other track and field events.

    Jharkhand is home to Salima Tete, a member of the Indian women’s hockey team which finished fourth in Tokyo.

    Coach Pratima Barwa, who honed her skills in the formative years, is receiving lots of calls from people asking how their daughters can become hockey players.

    “Since it is the sowing season and most of the children playing hockey belong to rural backgrounds, no fresh admissions are taking place now. Once the sowing season is over, there will be a rush for admissions,” said Barwa.

    Gwalior’s MP Women’s Hockey Academy has produced Sushila Chanu, Monika and Reena Khokhar, who were part of the Olympic team. Coach Paramjeet Singh notices a new trend in the enquiries.

    “Earlier, girls mostly from poor families or families with some sports connection came to us. In the last few days, affluent families from MP and other states approached us. A teacher couple from Punjab, a doctor couple from Indore and a businessman from UP want their daughters to join us.”

    Vishwajit Shinde, who runs Savarkar Rifle Club in Mumbai’s Dadar, is witnessing the same.

    “There is a big rise. In the last few days, we got about 100 inquiries and 46 registrations. We never saw such numbers in an entire year.”

    Subhas Nair trains archers at Mumbai’s Dhanushree Sport. From eight, the number of students under him has gone up to 80 in just a few days.

    In urban India, sports mostly means cricket. Thanks to the Olympic success, that seems to be changing. Shivraj Singh of Jaipur is the director of Digital Sales IRA, which has tie-ups with 36 sports companies.

    They connect youth willing to take up sports to various academies. “I used to fill up forms of cricket academies.

    Now athletics, football, hockey, weightlifting and wrestling are in demand. It is good that they like sports other than cricket and believe a career can be made.”

    Inputs from Rajesh Asnani (Jaipur), Sudhir Suryawanshi (Mumbai), Harpreet Bajwa, Namita Bajpai, Anuraag Singh, Mukesh Ranjan 

  • Enough of video of phone calls, sportspersons should get rewards as promised: Rahul Gandhi

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Enough of video of phone calls, now sportspersons should get rewards as promised, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Monday in an apparent swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

    In an Instagram post, he posted screenshots of media reports claiming that Olympians in the past had not been paid the rewards announced in Haryana.

    Gandhi also attached screenshots of tweets made in 2019 by Tokyo Games medal winner Neeraj Chopra – who won India’s first ever gold in a track-and-field event – and Bajrang Punia, who won the bronze in wrestling, in which they urged ministers and authorities to fulfil the promise of rewards for athletes after winning medals.

    “Players should get their dues along with congratulations, not cuts in the sports budget,” Gandhi wrote on Instagram.

    “Enough of video of phone calls, now hand out the amount of rewards,” the former Congress chief said in an apparent swipe at the prime minister who spoke with several medal winners and videos of which were widely shared on social media.

     

  • India is elated: President Kovind congratulates Neeraj Chopra for winning gold at Olympics

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday congratulated Neeraj Chopra for winning gold at the Tokyo Olympics for javelin throw and said his feat will inspire the country’s youth.

    “India is elated,” he said.

    Chopra on Saturday became only the second Indian to win an individual gold in the Olympics, the first track-and-field Games medal for the country.

    “Unprecedented win by Neeraj Chopra! Your javelin gold breaks barriers and creates history. You bring home first ever track and field medal to India in your first Olympics. Your feat will inspire our youth. India is elated! Heartiest congratulations!” Kovind tweeted.

    Chopra won the country’s seventh medal and first gold in this Olympics and joined shooter Abhinav Bindra (2008 Beijing Games) as India’s individual gold winner.