Indian Athletics Fall Short at Paris Olympics, Neeraj Chopra Shines with Silver

India's campaign at the Paris Olympics ended without a relay final berth as the men's 4x400m team finished 11th. The women's team also missed the final. Neeraj Chopra's silver in javelin was a proud moment despite narrowly missing gold.

The Indian athletics campaign at the Paris Olympics concluded with the men's 4x400 meter relay team missing the medal round, finishing fifth in their heat and 11th overall on Friday.

The team, consisting of Amoj Jacob, Rajesh Ramesh, Muhammed Ajmal, and Muhammed Anast, clocked a season-best time of 3:00.58 in their heat but fell short of advancing, as only the top three teams from each heat and the next two fastest teams moved forward. France, Nigeria, and Belgium outperformed India in the second heat to qualify for the finals.

In the first heat, teams from Botswana, Great Britain, the USA, Japan, and Zambia secured final spots. The Indian women's quartet of Jyothika Sri Dandi, Machettira Raju Poovamma, Vithya Ramraj, and Subha Venkatesan finished their 4x400m relay with a timing of 3:32.51, placing eighth in their heat and 15th overall, missing the final. Jyothika's timing of 51.30 seconds was notably the fastest among her teammates.

A highlight for India was Neeraj Chopra winning a silver medal in the men's javelin throw final with a best attempt of 89.45 meters. Though Chopra fell short of defending his Olympic title, finishing second to Nadeem, who set a new Olympic record at 92.97 meters, the silver medal was a significant achievement. Anderson Peters of Grenada secured the bronze with a throw of 88.54 meters.

Neeraj Chopra's performance in the Group B qualification round saw him achieve his second-best ever throw of 89.34 meters. Despite a competitive rivalry, Nadeem's throw at the 2022 Commonwealth Games was a decisive factor, surpassing Chopra's best effort. (ANI)