Neeraj Chopra was all smiles after winning the NC Classic 2025. Striking gold at home, in front of an energetic crowd, at a meet named after him was a moment to cherish. Held at Bengaluru’s Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Saturday, July 5, the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic marked a major milestone as India’s first-ever World Athletics Category A event.
But for Neeraj, the real joy came from watching Indian athletics rise around him. The night was not just about his throw, but about the growing depth in javelin. And from that pool of rising talent, he picked one name as the next big thing.
When 해외카지노 India asked Neeraj after his win who he sees as the next big thing in Indian javelin, he smiled and said, "Sachin (Yadav) was in good form today. He could’ve done better, but he twisted his ankle on the first throw. Still, I think he’s got it in him to go big. He’ll keep improving, and in the coming years, he’ll throw much farther."
Neeraj added, "There are quite a few Indian javelin throwers coming up. A lot of them have the talent to do really well."
Sachin Yadav, the silver medallist at the 2025 Asian Athletics Championships, was indeed in good form. He finished fourth at the NC Classic with a best throw of 82.33m.
Just weeks earlier, he had taken second place behind Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem at the continental meet, a performance that marked him as one of India’s brightest javelin prospects.
This 6-foot-5 athlete is definitely one to watch, and it's not just us saying it. Neeraj himself believes in his potential.
At the NC Classic, Neeraj wasn’t just there to compete. He was playing host too, and it showed. When he walked into the post-event press conference, he came in carrying two water bottles, one each for Julius Yego and Rumesh Pathirage, who had finished second and third.
It was a small gesture, but it said a lot about how Neeraj was wearing both hats as athlete and organiser with ease and grace.
During the press conference, when 해외카지노 asked Neeraj what had annoyed him the most as an organiser and what he would want to avoid next time, he laughed and said, "You start looking at things differently. There was a delay and I kept thinking, why are we behind schedule, why is it running late?"
He added, "When I saw that the cars carrying the javelins were taking too long, I told them to just bring them by hand so that things move smoothly. If I were just an athlete performing somewhere, these things would have never bothered me."
Neeraj also shared a moment from the event with Julius Yego, who had been trying to calm him down during the throws. "He’s a good friend and always supportive. He kept telling me to relax and stay calm. That’s the kind of friendship we share, we always encourage each other."
