Neeraj Chopra grabbed second spot at Lausanne Diamond League

India's javelin superstar Neeraj Chopra delivered a season-best effort of 88.05m to finish second at the Lausanne Diamond League, falling short of victory by nine centimetres. Sri Lanka's Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage claimed the gold medal with an impressive 88.14m attempt to continue his strong run in 2026.

Chopra's performance marks an encouraging return to elite form, crossing the 88m barrier for the first time this year. Earlier in the season, he had placed fourth at the Doha Diamond League and second at the Commonwealth Games without reaching the 86m mark. His previous competitive victory happened at the Neeraj Chopra Classic in Bengaluru in July 2025.

Intense Battle across Six Rounds

Pathirage set the pace early with throws of 85.99m and 87.06m after Chopra opened with an 83.54m launch. Chopra responded on his second attempt by throwing 88.05m, improving his previous season best by 2.23m to take a temporary lead. Pathirage answered back in the third round with the winning 88.14m mark.

Neither competitor altered the leaderboard during the final three rounds. Two-time world champion Anderson Peters finished third with 86.69m, while Keshorn Walcott took fourth on 83.71m. Marc Anthony Minichello placed fifth with 80.06m, followed by Curtis Thompson (78.13m), Jakub Vadlejch (77.32m), Artur Felfner (74.84m), and Simon Wieland (73.23m). This silver finish restores Chopra's momentum on the global circuit ahead of upcoming major world athletics fixtures.

With Inputs from Agency Threads and Image Courtesy: ANI