Paris 2024 Olympics: Will Neeraj Chopra be awarded prize money for silver medal in men’s javelin final?
Neeraj Chopra earned plenty of plaudits after winning a silver medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics. The star athlete is being praised for winning a second consecutive Olympic medal at the Summer Games. Though his second-place finish is being applauded across all quarters, Neeraj will not receive a cash reward for it.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) does not reward Olympic medal winners financially. Prior to the Games, the World Athletics announced a cash reward for those who came out triumphant in Paris. However, the body's decision was limited to awarding only the gold medal winners with a cash reward.
Since Chopra finished second, he is not entitled to the financial award. On the contrary, Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem, who won the gold, will be awarded $50,000 US. The prize money remains the same across all athletic disciplines.
World Athletics also announced that at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, all athletes who achieve a podium finish will be rewarded financially. However, Neeraj Chopra is still expected to be rewarded financially back home in India. He was awarded INR 6 crore by the Haryana government after he won gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Neeraj Chopra misses out on gold medal at Paris Olympics 2024 to Arshad Nadeem
Before the Summer Games, many expected Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem to give stiff competition to Neeraj Chopra. However, not many imagined that Chopra would lose out on a gold medal finish to Arshad.
Though Nadeem has always been a great competitor for Neeraj at several global competitions, he has not defeated the Indian before the Paris Olympics. In Paris, Nadeem threw up a 92.97-meter javelin throw in the men's javelin throw finals. This new Olympic world record throw won Arshad the coveted gold.
Neeraj Chopra had to settle for a silver medal after throwing 89.45 meters, his season-best. Chopra should be delighted to have won his second consecutive Olympic medal in Paris.