By age 13, Neeraj Chopra weighed nearly 190 pounds, making him one of the biggest boys in his tiny farming village.
By chance, he saw a javelin being thrown and noticed that, in flight, it seemed to shimmy like a fish through water.
A decade after that improbable beginning, Chopra won the javelin competition at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
It was the first gold medal ever won by India in track and field, considered the marquee sport of the Summer Games, and only the country’s second in an individual event in more than a century of Olympic competition.
Chopra’s triumph inspired athletes across India, the world’s most populous nation.
Persons:
Neeraj Chopra, Chopra
Organizations:
Tokyo, India, Summer, stoke, Games
Locations:
India