"See you in Odisha" - Neeraj Chopra anticipates huge attendance in Federation Cup finals
Ace Indian javelin thrower and reigning Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra took to X (formerly Twitter) to request everyone to attend in huge numbers at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneshwar, to witness him and other athletes in action at the ongoing Federation Cup 2024.
Chopra captioned the post:
"See you in Odisha!"
"As everyone is aware the 27th Federation Cup is happening in Bhubaneshwar, India. I am requesting everyone to attend in huge numbers and support our athletes. I am also competing after three years in India. See you in Bhubaneswar," he said in the video attached to the post.
Notably, Neeraj Chopra will compete directly in the men’s javelin throw final on Wednesday, May 15. Interestingly, both Neeraj and Kishore Jena, who secured their quota for the Paris Olympics 2024, will not take part in the qualification rounds on Tuesday, May 14.
9 javelin throwers to compete directly in the final, including Neeraj Chopra
Interestingly, a total of nine javelin throwers, who touched the 75m mark in their career, will not be a part of the qualifying rounds and will directly compete in the final on Wednesday.
However, the remaining 15 contestants will be competing in the qualifiers on Tuesday. The top three javelin throwers from the qualifying round will move to the final.
Neeraj Chopra will be seen in action for the first time in India since his last appearance in the Federation Cup 2021, securing a gold medal with a throw of 87.8m. This will also be his first appearance in India since his gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
It’s important to note that Neeraj started off his 2024 athletics season with the second spot, throwing a distance of 88.36m in the recent Doha Diamond League. The Federation Cup 2024 will be his second competition this season.
Asian Athletics Championships silver medallist DP Manu and former Asian Athletics Championships silver medallist Shivpal Singh will also compete directly in the finals on Wednesday.
Alongside these four athletes, Pramod, Rohit Kumar, Uttam Patil, Kunwer Singh Rana, and Manjinder Singh are the other five javelin throwers who secured their spots in the final directly.
The javelin throw final will be live-streamed on the Athletics Federation of India YouTube channel for Indian fans from 7:00 pm IST.