Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday spoke to star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra and congratulated him on winning the gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics. The Prime Minister said the athlete personifies the best of sporting talent and sportsman spirit.
Neeraj Chopra created history as he became the first athlete from the country to win a gold in track and field event in the Olympics. He threw the javelin to a distance of 87.58m in the ongoing mega event to pick the gold.
PM Modi lauded Neeraj Chopra's hard work and tenacity and said it was on full display during the Olympics.
"Just spoke to @Neeraj_chopra1 and congratulated him on winning the Gold! Appreciated his hard work and tenacity, which have been on full display during Tokyo2020. He personifies the best of sporting talent and sportsman spirit. Best wishes for his future endeavours," PM Modi said in a tweet.
Neeraj Chopra began his quest for a medal with a massive throw of 87.03 meters and was leading the pack after the end of the first attempt. He bettered it with the second throw of 87.58m.
While he wasn't able to improve any further, it was enough to get him the coveted medal. He is now the second Indian after Abhinav Bindra to win a gold medal in individual events
Neeraj Chopra had announced his arrival in style in the Tokyo Olympics on Wednesday when he threw a monstrous throw of 86.65m and automatically qualified for the final after just his first attempt.
India has now won seven medals in the multi-sporting event, the country's best-ever performance. In the ongoing Tokyo 2020, Bajrang Punia (Bronze), Mirabai Chanu (silver), PV Sindhu (bronze), Lovlina Borgohain (bronze), men's hockey team ( bronze), and Ravi Kumar Dahiya (silver) have also won medals.
( With inputs from ANI )
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