Neeraj Chopra of India in action at the Paris 2024 Olympics. —Reuters
BENGALURU: India’s Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra has postponed an eponymous javelin event in the southern Indian city of Bengaluru this month after his country and neighbour Pakistan extended their worst fighting in nearly three decades.
The Neeraj Chopra Classic on May 24, a World Athletics Gold category meet, was set to feature a host of international names including Anderson Peters, Julius Yego, Thomas Roehler and Curtis Thompson.
Chopra’s move came after cricket-mad India and Pakistan suspended their elite Twenty20 leagues on Friday in the wake of the ongoing conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbours.
“This decision has been made after careful thought and consultation, with the wellbeing of athletes, stakeholders, and the broader community as the top priority,” Chopra’s team announced on social media on Friday.
“We believe in the unifying power of sport. But, in this critical moment, standing firm with the nation matters most. All our gratitude and thoughts at this point are only with our Armed Forces, who are at the forefront for our nation.”
Chopra said late last month it was “completely out of the question” that rival and Paris Olympics gold medallist Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan would attend the meet following a deadly militant attack in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
The two countries have clashed since India struck multiple locations in Pakistan on Wednesday that it claimed were “terrorist camps”, in retaliation for the attack in Kashmir, without providing a shred of evidence. Pakistan has denied the accusation, terming it a blatant lie.
Chopra, who won gold at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, said a revised schedule for his event would be provided in due course.
