Janusz Kusocinski Memorial 2025: Neeraj Chopra settles for silver after Weber pips him for top spot again

CHORZOW(Poland): India’s ace javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra settled for a silver medal as Germany’s Julian Weber took the top honours at the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial 2025 event in Poland.

Since last week, Weber has ousted Neeraj for the gold medal for a second time. In the Doha Diamond League, Neeraj went on to hit a career-first 90m mark with a stunning throw of 90.23m. However, Weber delivered a 91.06m throw to dethrone the Indian from the top and take the top prize.

On Friday, the 27-year-old Indian trailed in the third spot after registering his five throws. He saved his best for his final attempt and sent his javelin to a distance of 84.14m to take the second spot while battling wet conditions in Chorzow.

Neeraj’s throw sent Grenada’s Anderson Peters to third, who registered 83.24m, which came in the third round as his best attempt. Weber, with his second-round throw of 86.12m sealed his spot at the top of the podium.

Neeraj struggled to find his rhythm in his initial attempts. He began with a foul throw on his first and followed it up with 81.28m in his second. His woes increased after back-to-back foul throws in the third and fourth rounds.

In his penultimate attempt, Neeraj improved his initial best with a throw of 81.80m but still stood far behind, dethroning Weber from the top. In his final chance to script the gold medal to his name, Neeraj struck 84.14m and moved to the second spot. On the other hand, Weber, in his last attempt, breached 85.11m and stayed at the top.

This was the 22nd consecutive tournament where Neeraj finished in the top two, with his last finish outside the first two spots dating back to 2021.

The Chorzow meet marked Neeraj’s third competitive outing of the 2025 athletics calendar. He stood triumphant in the Potch Invitational Meet in Potchefstroom, South Africa, with an 84.52m throw in April.

The meet record in men’s javelin throw (91.50m) at the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial is held by Czechia’s Jan Zelezny, who is Neeraj’s current coach. (ANI)