New Delhi, June 27
Indian world champion and Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra reclaimed his number one spot in men's javelin throw world rankings from Anderson Peters of Grenada following a string of brilliant performances on the international stage.
World Athletics updated the rankings earlier this week, increasing Neeraj's points to 1,445 compared to Peters' tally of 1,431, according to Olympics.com. Also, Pakistan's Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem sits at number four with 1,370 points to his name.
Germany's Julian Weber, who has the best throw of 2025 so far, a 91.06 effort at the Doha Diamond League, is third in the rankings, and Czechia's Jakub Vadlejch, the Tokyo 2020 silver medallist, is in fifth spot, completing a very impressive-looking top five.
Neeraj lost his top spot to Peters back in September 2024, just shortly after the Paris Olympics, where he attained a silver medal with a throw of 89.45, and Peters took home the bronze.
The year 2025 has been incredible for Neeraj, as he kickstarted with a win at the Potch Invitational in Potchefstroom, South Africa, in April and followed it up with a very special second-place finish at Doha Diamond League, where he crossed the 90-metre mark for the first time ever with a throw of 90.23 m.
He also went on to secure a second spot in the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial in Poland later that month and resumed his winning ways with back-to-back titles at Paris Diamond League and Ostrava Golden Spike this month, with best efforts of 88.16 m and 85.29 m.
Neeraj has outdone Peters in all their four battles this year, extending his streak over his Grenada rival. The last time he finished behind him was during the 2022 World Athletics Championships, when Neeraj had to settle for a silver with a throw of 88.39, as Peters threw a solid 89.91 m.
Overall, the Tokyo 2020 Gold medalist leads Peters by 16-5 in major javelin throw competition finals. Both are expected for another face off at Neeraj Chopra Classic event at Bengaluru on July 5.
— ANI
Reader Comments
What a champion! Neeraj Chopra is making India proud yet again 🇮🇳 His consistency is unbelievable - from Olympics to Diamond Leagues, he keeps delivering. That 90m throw in Doha gave me goosebumps! Hope he crosses 92m soon.
Interesting to see Arshad Nadeem at 4th position. Healthy competition between South Asian athletes is good for the sport. But no one can match Neeraj's class and consistency - 16-5 record against Peters says it all!
Neeraj is the perfect role model for young athletes - humble yet fiercely competitive. His journey from a Haryana village to world no.1 is stuff of legends. Hope he gets more support from govt to develop athletics infrastructure.
While we celebrate Neeraj, let's not forget other Indian athletes struggling for basic facilities. One champion doesn't mean our sports system is fixed. Need more Neerajs in other events too! ðŸƒâ€â™€ï¸
That Bengaluru event on July 5 is going to be epic! Peters will be hungry for revenge after 4 straight losses. Hope our local fans turn up in huge numbers to support Neeraj. Jai Hind!
So proud of our golden boy! 👠But I wish media would stop comparing him with Pakistani athlete Nadeem unnecessarily. Neeraj is competing at a different level altogether - his rivals are global champions like Peters and Weber.
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