Two-time Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra believes the NC Classic 2025 javelin throw, set to take place in Bengaluru on Saturday, will be a watershed moment for Indian athletics.
Named in his honour, the inaugural NC Classic marks a historic milestone as India’s first-ever World Athletics Continental Tour Gold Level or World Athletics Category A event.
For the Tokyo 2020 gold medallist, the moment is as surreal as it is significant.
“I feel like I’m in a dream. Medals are a different thing. But I’ve given something like this to India and to Indian athletes,” Neeraj said at the pre-event press conference on Friday. “I’m very happy about that. This is the beginning of a new chapter in our athletics.”
While the event does bear his name, Neeraj was quick to emphasise that the NC Classic isn’t about personal recognition, but more to do with providing world-class platforms for future Indian athletes to compete alongside the global elite.
“This is the beginning of international competitions in India. As we see, there are so many international competitions in Germany and such nations – A category, B, C etc and every week, there’s a competition,” he said.
“So, this is what I want in India, as there should be at least 4, 5, 6 competitions which are world class. The athletes should get a chance and people should see them play. That will be very good for our sport,” the Indian javelin throw ace added.
Even though the significance of the inaugural NC Classic isn’t lost on Neeraj, his main focus still firmly remains on defending his title at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo in September.
“Of course, tomorrow’s competition is very important and after that we will start preparing for the World Championships. I’m very happy to be here with the coach (Jan Zelezny). Yesterday, I was training in the gym with the coach. This is the kind of competition that will be the target ahead of the World Championship,” Neeraj stressed.
The NC Classic will be Neeraj’s sixth competitive outing of the 2025 athletics season.
The reigning world champion and two-time Olympic medallist began his season with a win at the Potch Invitational in South Africa before finishing second at the Doha Diamond League, where he breached the 90m barrier with a massive 90.23m throw – a new national record.
He had to settle for a second-place finish again at the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial in Poland before logging wins at the Paris leg of the Diamond League and the prestigious Ostrava Golden Spike athletics meet in Czechia.
Neeraj’s last outing on Indian soil was at the Federation Cup in Bhubaneswar last year, where he claimed top spot with a relatively modest 82.27m effort.