Neeraj Chopra says I was trying so hard for the Olympics and now I have to take the decision to undergo surgery

Chopra was dealing with a nagging adductor pain (a problem related to the thigh muscles) in the run-up to the Paris Games. But he ran a season-best 89.45m to secure a silver medal, making him the first athlete aged 20 to do so. track and field athlete of India to have two Olympic medals, the first being an unprecedented gold in Tokyo.

Chopra finished behind Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, who stole the show with an Olympic record throw of 92.97m to become his country’s first individual Olympic gold medallist.

“I have a lot of things on my mind. When I’m pitching, 60-70% of my attention is on the injury. I don’t want to get injured. Whenever I try to pitch, you can see that my velocity is low. I’m trying my best,” he said.

“The doctor told me to have surgery, but I didn’t have much time to make that decision before the world championships or after the world championships, because it takes a long time to prepare for the Olympics,” she added, referring to the 2023 world championships where she won gold.

The 26-year-old, despite not being at his best here, became the third Indian to win back-to-back Olympic medals after PV Sindhu and Sushil Kumar.

“I’m still trying,” he said with a hint of frustration.

“In sport it’s not good, it’s not good to force yourself and keep going. If you want to have a long career, you have to be fit and healthy, but there are competitions where you can’t make a decision. Now we’ll work on that and on technique,” he added.

Chopra said he will speak to his team and then “make a decision.” He also detailed how the past seven years have been difficult for him as far as his fitness is concerned.

“I felt it in 2017. After that, I underwent many treatments. But I will have to make an important decision in this case,” he said.

I won’t find peace until I get a big release.

She didn’t mention the 90-meter mark, but Chopra said she has the potential to achieve bigger throws. Her career best remains 89.94 meters, which she achieved in 2022.

“The distance I had in me in 2016, especially in 2018, when I marked 88 m in the Asian Games“After that, I feel like I still have a lot of releases left. So until that happens, I won’t be able to find peace. And I want to tell you that there is a lot inside,” he said without going into details.

“And I will. I will keep my mind prepared for the future. I will work on things. I will stay in shape.”

I haven’t been able to throw so well

Chopra, perhaps for the first time, spoke out about how much the disorder has affected her.

“I’m not able to throw from a full court. I’ve been throwing for a year or two now. Most pitchers throw 40 to 50 in a session. It took me two or three weeks to complete a session because I’m afraid of getting injured.

“It’s very difficult. I throw it hard.” He also explained that the lower body is just as important as the throwing arm to get the proper lift and speed.

“If the rest of the body doesn’t work, it’s useless. I can throw fast and hard, but when I have a broken leg, there are a lot of technical aspects to consider. It’s very difficult to throw with just the arm, to put all the power into it.

“If your legs don’t work properly, it’s useless. There are many technical aspects. I’m not going to go into details, you won’t understand.”

Chopra said she finds it painful to miss competitions due to fitness issues. “My coach always says that if you have a good blocking leg and a good groin, then the throw will be 2-3-4 metres ahead and then I have to send a message saying, ‘Sorry, I have to withdraw.’

“Personally, I don’t like it at all,” he said.