'It was extra special': Neeraj Chopra's first response after historic Diamond League win

Neeraj Chopra was like a diamond in the rough during the initial stages of his athletics career. However, the Haryana athlete not only worked hard but also overcame injuries to become one of the world's best javelin throwers. After the Olympic gold and World Championship silver medal success, Neeraj Chopra added yet another feather to his cap by winning the Diamond League 2022 Final. Chopra made history on Thursday, September 8 becoming the first Indian to achieve the feat. The 24-year-old was also awarded a Diamond Trophy, USD 30,000 prize money and a wild card for the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

Diamond League 2022: Neeraj Chopra's special message after historic win

The event in Zurich marked Neeraj Chopra's third appearance. The other two Neeraj Chopra Diamond League appearances came in 2017 and 2018 where he finished finishing seventh and fourth respectively. The Diamond League 2022 event was also the final event of the season. Taking to Twitter, Chopra thanked everyone for his first Diamond League success. He wrote," Incredible feeling to close the 2022 season as Diamond Trophy winner. The atmosphere was brilliant and it was extra special to have my uncle and friends in the stadium. Happy to win my first trophy! Sabhi ke pyaar aur support ke liye bahut bahut dhanyawad."

Diamond League Finals: Highlights of Neeraj Chopra Javelin throw event    

Talking about the Diamond League, the event encompasses 32 Diamond Disciplines, following a championship-style model. Athletes earn points at the 13-series meet to qualify for the final of their respective disciplines. The 24-year-old Indian javelin ace competed in six competitions and rewrote his national record twice this season. The absence of World Champion Anderson Peters from the event proved to be a blessing in disguise for the Indian athlete.

Neeraj Chopra started the Diamond League 2022 final with a foul throw after overstepping his first attempt. The Olympic champion bounced back with a throw of 88.44m in his second attempt which ultimately proved to be medal winning throw. Coming to the rest of the attempts, the last four ended at distance of 88.00m, 86.11m, 87.00m and 83.60m. Olympic silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch of Czech Republic finished second with a best throw of 86.94m which he registered in his fourth attempt. Julian Weber of Germany was third with a best of 83.73m.