Olympic javelin gold medalist Neeraj Chopra is aiming to break the 90m mark before the Paris Olympics and says the target could be achieved soon depending on how his preparations are going. Chopra’s best throw in competition was during the 2022 Stockholm Diamond League, when he threw the spear a distance of 89.94m. Although he broke through 90m in training, he has not yet reached this level in competition. The 26-year-old, who is aiming to retain his Olympic gold in Paris, said on Thursday: “I will try to break the 90m mark before then. Hopefully it will happen before Paris, everything is on track.” It’s going well, so (people) might not have to wait until the Olympics, it might happen before then. The preparations are good.”

The reigning world champion’s confidence comes from having a good off-season focusing on fitness and strength, coupled with the success he has enjoyed since winning gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

“At the beginning of the season, the focus was on fitness and strength, and there was no dedicated javelin training. I think I improved a lot technically because of it. Also, there was no physical training in South Africa and Turkey.” Well,” Jope said Ra said during a virtual interaction in Turkey.

Chopra added that his “self-confidence” has really grown after his success at the Tokyo Olympics, which will help him greatly heading into Paris.

“After Tokyo, the confidence was definitely up. Plus, I competed in quite a few tournaments…two world championships, a silver and a gold, won the Diamond League trophy, made some nice shots, and then The same goes for retaining the Asian Games gold medal (Hangzhou).

“So, the success between Tokyo and Paris gave me a lot of confidence that, yes, I can go up against strong competition,” Chopra added.

“My mind is telling me that this is the second Olympics, so this time I’m more prepared mentally and physically for Paris. I haven’t done much in terms of mental training, but I know,’ Yeah, it’s my second Olympics, the feeling is there.

Chopra also said that he has been working hard to overcome his technical shortcomings after his success at the Tokyo Olympics.

“Whatever shortcomings I had before Tokyo, I worked hard to overcome them in the years leading up to Paris. The best part is that everything went smoothly and I was very positive.” Chopra will be there on May 10 He starts his competitive season in the Doha Diamond League, followed by the prestigious Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku, Finland on June 18, where he will face Germany’s 19-year-old rising star Max Dehning ), the latter is the latest entrant to the 90m club.

“They (two games) are very important in the preparation period for the Olympics to regain a competitive feeling after the off-season. I will also decide which games to participate in in consultation with my coach and team.” Darling has become a strong player recently A contender, the youngster will pose a huge challenge to Chopra in the coming months after recently completing a 90.20m throw. But Chopra said he was excited to see him at the game.

“When I competed in Tokyo and other places, most of my competitors were bragging about throwing 90-plus times. So, it’s not a big deal. What matters is what you do on that day.

“I’m excited to compete with Darling. But it depends on how much pressure they (competitors) can handle. That’s the biggest challenge. I’m sure I’ll be playing a lot of games with Max (Daling). Never with him before. Played together. It would be fun and I would love it.

“He completely jumped 80 (meters). From 70m, he threw 90m (directly). This is the first time something like this has happened and I will enjoy his challenge,” Chopra said.

“KISHORE JENA MAY BREAK THE 90M MARK BEFORE ME”

Kishore Jena won the silver medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games with a throw of 87.54m, giving China a one-two silver medal finish at the continental competition. Chopra said he wouldn’t be surprised if the 28-year-old beat him in the 90m.

“The progress he has made in the World Championships and Asian Games, who knows Kishore may break the 90m mark before me. 90m mark atka hua hai, but kabhi na kabhi ho jayega (That 90m mark has not been reached yet, but One day it will happen).” The star athlete added that the weather in Paris won’t pose much of a challenge to him as it will be slightly warmer, although not as hot as Tokyo.

“Paris can be a bit hot too and I’m used to it. But when it’s cold I have some problems because in the time between throws you need to keep doing stretching, sprinting and things like that to keep your body in shape. Healthy.” Warm. ” Chopra, however, added that he is ready to take on any challenge.

“Personally, I love warm weather. But no matter what the conditions are, we have to be ready for it and be mentally prepared for the specific weather.

“We can’t go into the game with a preconception about the weather, it will only hurt the performance.”

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)