Two-time Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra insisted he was far from surprised by the steady ascent of Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage, the 23-year-old Sri Lankan prodigy who has captured the athletics world’s attention with a string of staggering performances this season. Speaking at the inaugural edition of the Indian Athletics Awards in New Delhi on Saturday, Chopra expressed his delight at the emergence of a fierce South Asian rivalry in a discipline long dominated by Europeans.
Chopra’s comments arrived a mere day after Pathirage clinched victory at the Doha Diamond League with a superb best effort of 88.68m on Friday. The Sri Lankan outperformed an elite field that included Chopra himself, who registered 85.69m in what was his highly anticipated return from a lengthy injury layoff.
Pathirage was virtually an unknown entity last year when Chopra personally invited him to the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic. While the Sri Lankan turned heads by finishing third at that event, he has elevated his game to an entirely different stratosphere this season. Pathirage opened his 2026 campaign with a couple of effortless 89-metre-plus throws before unleashing a monstrous 92.62m at the Rome Diamond League, becoming only the fourth Asian in history to breach the elusive 90m barrier. In doing so, he missed Arshad Nadeem’s continental record of 92.94m by a mere whisker.
“Rumesh is very talented. I met him last year. I thought he would throw well. I met him again. I felt very good,” Chopra said when asked about the rising star.
Incidentally, it was Chopra who had coaxed a reluctant Pathirage out of his shell last year, predicting regular podium finishes for the Sri Lankan when the latter hesitated to speak in English during the post-event press conference at the NC Classic.
Replicating the very consistency he long idolised in Chopra, Pathirage has already thrown in excess of 88 metres as many as four times this year.
With Pathirage making an indelible mark and Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem remaining a perennial threat, the global javelin landscape is reshaping into a captivating three-way tussle: India vs Pakistan vs Sri Lanka. Throw in Grenada’s two-time world champion Anderson Peters, reigning Olympic champion Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago, and Kenya’s Julius Yego, and the men’s javelin field for the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Glasgow promises to be an absolute blockbuster.
Chopra did not mince his words when assessing the depth of the field ahead of the Games, which get underway on July 23.
“There is a lot of competition in South Asia. Commonwealth Games and Asian Games are going to be equally tough, like the World Championships and Olympics. It’s good for the Javelin community. Our Javelin is getting attention in this area. It’s a good thing. New talents will come forward. Rumesh is also a new talent. He is very young.”
Reflecting on his own performance in the Qatari capital, the double Olympic medallist was remarkably content with the 85.69m effort that secured him fourth place, even though it kept him off the podium for a second successive tournament.
The Indian talisman was returning from an eight-month hiatus following an injury-hampered, eighth-place finish at the World Championships in Tokyo last year. That result marked the first time in nearly four years that Chopra had failed to secure a top-two finish in a competitive meet.
HAPPY WITH DOHA SHOW: NEERAJ
Chopra later revealed that he had carried a severe back injury into the World Championships and rued his decision to compete in Tokyo. The Haryana native explained that his rehabilitation was deeply methodical and took considerably longer than anticipated because he was battling multiple physical setbacks simultaneously.
“This time I didn’t have just one injury. I had two or three injuries. I had an Achilles injury in my blocking leg. I had an injury in my back. I had an injury in my shoulder and elbow,” he disclosed after being crowned the Best Male Athlete of the Year at the gala.
“And I have been having some or the other injury in my groin for a long time. So, I thought calmly that I have to do rehabilitation first. I have to start throwing slowly. It’s not like I am in a hurry. Normally, I start throwing in January or February. But I started it in May.”
When questioned on the importance of maintaining a positive mindset during such a gruelling comeback trail, the champion athlete offered a candid perspective.
“I knew what situation I was in. If I was (fit and normal as earlier) and was in 4th or 3rd position, I wouldn’t have accepted it. I wouldn’t have accepted it even if it was 85m. But now I knew what situation I was in. And I had to move forward step by step. I was happy with whatever throw I got. And I knew that my preparation was good.”
In another significant development, Chopra confirmed he has parted ways with the legendary Jan elezn-under whose tutelage he crossed the 90m mark for the sole time in his career at last year’s Doha meet. Chopra has transitioned away from the Czech icon to join forces with Jai Chaudhary, his long-time senior and childhood mentor.
“I have been in touch with him (Jaiveer) for a long time. But after playing under Zelezny, I don’t know what to expect,” Chopra admitted. “I have to wor
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