And thus it begins: Neeraj Chopra and Kishore Jena will begin their Olympic build-up at Diamond League

Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra will face a star-studded yet well-known field in Doha on Friday when he kicks off his season in the opening leg of the coveted Diamond League one-day meet series. This will put his preparations for the Paris Games to the test.

The 26-year-old Indian javelin sensation, who is currently the world and Asian Games champion, will face competitors like Olympic and world medalist Jakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic and former world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada.

Kishore Jena, a fellow countryman and silver medalist from the Asian Games, will also be competing in his first Diamond League match. Jena’s personal best is 87.54 meters, while Chopra holds the national record with an all-time high of 89.94 meters.

Julian Weber, the German champion and fourth-place finisher in the Olympic and World Championships, will also participate in the 10-man event. On May 19, the league will then go to Morocco.

Here, too, Chopra is the reigning champion after defeating Vadlejch and Peters to start his title-winning 2023 campaign.

“Teamwork is essential for success. My physiotherapist and coach are really helpful. My technique is evaluated by the coach, and we discuss which style works best for me. We also have a strength training expert on staff. According to a statement from the Sports Authority of India, Chopra said that preparation has been essential.

At that point, the Indian had launched the spear 88.67 meters, compared to Vadlejch’s 88.63 meters and Peters’ 85.88 meters, respectively.

Here at the Qatar Sports Club in 2022, Peters threw the fifth-longest throw in history (93.07 meters).

Here in 2022, Vadlejch, the 2023 Diamond League winner and silver medalist at the Tokyo Olympics, set a personal best with a distance of 90.88 meters.

In the Diamond League, Chopra has won three straight legs and raised the champion’s trophy in 2022.

Following this competition, Chopra will participate in the National Federation Cup Senior Athletics Championships, which will take place in Bhubaneswar from May 12 to May 15, his first home competition in three years.

Jena will be attending the event as well. The men’s javelin qualifying round is scheduled for May 14 and the final on May 15, according to the schedule.

On March 17, 2021, Chopra participated in the same Federation Cup domestic tournament and earned a gold medal with a throw of 87.80 meters.

Chopra will participate in the famous Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku, Finland, on June 18, after his participation in the home tournament.

He will compete against Germany’s 19-year-old star Max Dehning, who is the newest member of the 90m club, at that event.

This season, he wants to breach the coveted 90-meter barrier and defend his Olympic championship. Chopra had emphasized in a previous interview with PTI the importance of avoiding injuries.

The government has paid around Rs 4 crore towards Chopra’s training, equipment, coach’s pay, and out-of-pocket expenses throughout the current cycle of the Paris Olympics.

He credited his readiness to the instruction he had received abroad at several foreign locations like Finland, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and Turkey.

“I learned how international athletes arrange their schedules and choose their training facilities after Tokyo to ensure less travel, faster acclimatization, and a healthy diet in the run-up to a big event.

“I talk to my coach about these specifics, and once a choice is reached, we contact TOPS for support. For us, it has been effective,” he said.

According to Chopra, adopting a healthy diet has also contributed to his recovery.

Indeed, you need to adjust to eating bland cuisine. It was difficult at first for me to not have Indian cuisine, but I’ve gotten accustomed to this bland food,” Chopra remarked, noting that he mostly eats vegetarianism.