NEWS
Indian star, Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, who won gold at the 2018 Asian Games, setting the national record of 88.06m, has been recommended for Khel Ratna by AFI.
The 22 year old clinched gold in 2018 Commonwealth Games, he also set the World Junior Record of 86.48m at the U20 championships and became the 2016 IAAF World U20 Champion.
Chopra is the only track and field athlete to get a recommendation from the AFI for the country’s highest sports award this year.
It was on Saturday, when star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra was recommended for the third time in a row for the coveted Khel Ratna Award by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI).
In 2018, after winning a gold at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, Chopra has already been conferred with the Arjuna Award. In the following year only, he also got recommended for Khel Ratna.
After winning gold in 2018, Asian Games, Neeraj was again recommended for Khel Ratna, last year.
A source told PTI, “Neeraj is the only athlete recommended by the awards committee for the Khel Ratna this year.”
The Khel Ratna Award is the, is the highest sports award which carries a medallion, a certificate and a cash prize of Rs. 7.5 lakh.
Top sprinter, Dutee chand, who won 2 silver medals in the 2018, Asian Games (one each in 100m and 200m) and a gold in the World University Games. He has already been recommended by the Odisha government for the Arjuna Award.
In his first competition after recovering from an elbow injury, Chopra in South Africa already qualified for the Tokyo Olympics with a throw of 87.86 m.
The 2018, Jakarta Asian Games, was Chopra’s last major international competition where he won, a gold with a national record of 88.06m. But after that, in May 2019, he had to undergo a surgery to treat his injury.
2019, was the year when he missed out the entire season including the IAAF World Championships, the Diamond League and the Asian Championships in order to recover from his injury, but for the Tokyo Olympics qualification he breached the mark of 85m.
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