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Neeraj Chopra: Neeraj Chopra out of Asian Games and Diamond League final, season ended prematurely

Samira Vishwas | August 30, 2026 12:24 PM CST

Neeraj Chopra ruled out Asian Games 2026: India’s star javelin thrower and Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra’s 2026 season has ended prematurely. He will be unable to take part in the upcoming Asian Games and the prestigious Diamond League finals due to a serious ankle ligament tear injury suffered during a practice session. After long discussions with his doctors and support staff, Neeraj has taken the difficult decision to end this difficult season and focus completely on his recovery.

Sharing this information on his official handle on social media, Neeraj wrote that after hard work, he felt like he was finally regaining his lost rhythm, especially after throwing his best throw of the season in the Lausanne Diamond League. But unfortunately, he injured his ankle during training soon after.

This big injury blow came after a brilliant performance in Lausanne
This unfortunate injury comes at a time when Neeraj had recently produced his best performance of the year in the Lausanne Diamond League. He had finished second there with an impressive throw of 88.05 metres, missing out by just nine centimeters to Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage, who had finished first with a throw of 88.14 metres.

If we look at this year’s journey, before the Lausanne Meet, Neeraj had participated in only two other competitions in 2026. He won fourth place at the Doha Diamond League and a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games, although he failed to cross the 86 meters mark in both events. The performance in Lausanne had raised hopes among his fans that he was once again returning to his old rhythm.

Full focus will be on recovery, big blow for athletics team
Being out of the biggest tournaments of the year like the Asian Games and Diamond League is a huge blow for the Indian athletics contingent. Expressing his disappointment, Neeraj said that it was quite disappointing for him, especially when he felt that he was getting very close to his rhythm. However, he adopted a positive attitude and said that failures are a part of the journey.

While giving a message to his fans, Neeraj said that his entire focus is now on recovering well and returning to the field stronger than before. He also expressed his gratitude to everyone for continuously giving him love and support during this difficult time. The fans of Neeraj Chopra, who brought glory to the country by winning gold medal in Tokyo Olympics 2021 and silver medal in Paris Olympics 2024, are definitely disappointed with this recent setback, but everyone will be waiting for his strong comeback.