Dikhyaa Mohanty 
Olympic champion javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra scripted history as he became the first Indian to clinch a Diamond League Meeting title by winning the Lausanne leg here.
According to the reports, Chopra, who had pulled out of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games due to a “minor” groin injury he had suffered while winning silver during the World Championships last month, hurled the spear to 89.08m in his first attempt to seal the win in style.
Further, Chopra rested and rehabilitated for a month but it looked like the injury had not happened at all as he continued his vintage form. The 89.08m throw was his third career-best effort. His second throw measured 85.18m before passing on his third attempt.
His fourth throw was a foul while he again passed his fifth attempt before coming up with 80.04m in the sixth and last round. Only the top three after the fifth round get the sixth throw.
Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch finished second with a best throw of 85.88m while Curtis Thompson of USA was third with a best effort of 83.72m. Chopra qualified for the Diamond League Finals in Zurich on September 7 and 8, and also became the first Indian to do so. Despite the win, he remained on fourth spot with 15 points — with the addition of eight points on Friday. The top six after the Lausanne leg qualify for Zurich Finals.
Vadlejch remained in the top spot with 27 points, followed by Julian Weber (19 points) of Germany and world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada (16 points). Weber and Peters did not take part in Lausanne. Peters is recovering from an injury after he was assaulted inside a boat in his country earlier this month. Thompson and Latvia’s Patricks Gailums also qualified for Zurich Finals.
Chopra also qualified for the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary by breaching the 85.20m qualifying mark.
