Neeraj Chopra finishes second in Diamond League Final

Zurich: World Champion Neeraj Chopra produced his best throw of the night on his sixth and final turn — hurling the javelin to 85.01 — to finish second in the season-ending Diamond League Final here on Thursday night. Chopra was placed third at 84.35 with two legal throws, followed by three fouls, but moved up to second place, overtaking Keshorn Walcott, with his last-ditch effort.

The runner-up finish also helped the Indian legend and reigning World Champion keep his incredible streak of 26 consecutive top-two finishes alive at the international stage.

In a meet held a few weeks before the upcoming World Championships in Tokyo in October, Chopra failed to retain the title he had won the previous year, finishing third with a best effort of 84.35 metres, which fell short of his personal best of 90.23m in the seven-player field in this Swiss city.

The defending champion Chopra struggled to find his rhythm and made mistakes in his technique as he struggled to produce his best. The eventual winner, Julian Weber, came up with his personal best and world-leading distance in the first round itself, a massive heave that landed the spear at 91.37 metres, improving on his previous best of 90.06m, which killed the competition in the first few minutes itself..

Former World Champion Anderson Peters finished fourth with a best throw of 82.06 as most of the others, barring Weber, failed to produce their best in the two-day event.(Agencies)

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