Competition important, not 90m: Neeraj Chopra

Bangalore: The national media crammed into a banquet hall in the city and waited with bated breath to greet the stars of the Neeraj Chopra Classic on Friday morning.

And the moment Neeraj Chopra took the stage with his fellow competitors Thomas Rohler, Julius Yego and Sachin Yadav, the questions flew thick and fast.

"This is the highest level of athletics meet ever held in India. It feels good that so many good athletes are here to compete," began a visibly excited Neeraj Chopra.

A different proposition

For the 'golden boy' of Indian athletics, the past few months have been a whirlwind. The 90 meter barrier was breached at Doha and then came successful stints across Europe, where he took top honours at the Paris leg of the Diamond league, followed by victory at the Ostrava Golden Spike.

The Neeraj Chopra Classic, however, is a slightly different ball-game for the double Olympic medalist. With the event bearing his name, the javelin maestro is also keeping an eye on the organisation of the event, in addition to going through his practice drills.

"Competing is the most difficult part and my mind is always focused on playing. But now, I have to think about organising too. I'm thinking about the food and making sure that it's not too spicy," he said, while drawing a chuckle from his fellow competitors on stage.

Thomas Rohler immediately gave his approval.

"So far, he (Chopra) is doing a really good job. It's a pleasure and joy to come to a country that is on the rise in javelin," said Rohler.

Julius Yego echoed similar sentiments, while calling the Neeraj Chopra Classic a "big event."

"We know javelin throw as a European event, but then Chopra came along and now it has gone global," he said.

An easy decision

For both Rohler and Yego, the decision to participate was an easy one to make.

"My manager told me about the event and I said I want to go as Chopra is a good friend," said Yego.

Similarly, Rohler, who is on the comeback trail said the choice to come to Bangalore was an easy one.

"It was not difficult to confirm participation. Yes, I'm going to take the opportunity and I'm going to show up," he said.

For young Sachin Yadav, meanwhile, the very idea of rubbing shoulders with these stalwarts was an opportunity too good to pass.

"When I got the message from Neeraj Chopra, I couldn't believe it and felt really excited. I'm excited to perform for India and to play alongside the best in the world," he said.

While they might be fierce competitors on the track, the camaraderie between the competitors was visible.

"We're all together on the track, we share tapes, sometime even javelins and we support each other, "said Rohler.

Soon enough, the media began to nudge Chopra with questions on the 90m mark.

With a rise smile, the 27-year-old responded that the competition was more important and the mark.

"The biggest thing is to make the event successful and make it bigger in the future. We want to add more disciplines to this in the future. Now five Indian athletes are competing, will be good if more are competing in the future, he concluded.