The Wanda Diamond League is set for the season-opener in Doha on May 5 (Friday) with the best track and field athletes making their way to Qatar to compete in the international competition. And ahead of the Doha Diamond League, India’s Tokyo 2020 gold medalist Neeraj Chopra is gearing up to defend his title which he claimed winning the 2022 Diamond League final in Zurich.

Before travelling to Doha to compete in the Diamond League, which will be the first competitive tournament of 2023, Chopra spoke about how well he is preparing to compete against the very best in Doha.

“My preparations are going well. We were in South Africa recently where we were focusing on concentrating on strength and conditioning. Now we are in Turkey at the Gloria Sports Arena to improve my technical skill so that I am in peak condition to compete in Doha,” Chopra said in a virtual media interaction with journalists on Sunday.

Chopra, who travelled to the UK’s Loughborough University and South Africa’s Potchefstroom for training-cum-exposure trips before settling down in Turkey’s Gloria Sports Arena in Antalya for the upcoming European and Continental Championships, will be seen in action at the Khalifa International Stadium where the Indian javelin throw ace will be competing against reigning world champion Grenadian Anderson Peters, Czech Republic’s Olympic silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch and European champion Julian Weber of Germany among others.

“This year we have a hectic competitive schedule with the World Championships (in August) and the Asian Games (in October) later this year, so I want to improve technically as much as I can before we start competing this year. Along with the coaches and physios we are planning my training schedule very precisely so that I can improve while giving myself enough time to recover also because I want to compete in as many competitions this year as possible and avoid any kind of injuries.”

Chopra had missed the Doha Diamond League last year due to injury.

“This year I am planning my schedules with the coach and physio - about which competitions to take part in and which main ones to focus more on like Dimaond League events and Continental Tours so that there is enough time inbetween for recovery and training,” he said.

He further added, “I am always looking to improve so that is my main focus this year also, I want to keep on enhancing my performance with each passing competition and year.”

He went on to talk about the dynamic he shares with coach Klaus Bartonietz, who has been guiding him since 2019 and has been by his side through various successes he has had over the last 4 years.

Chopra said, “Coach Klaus is wonderful, we share a great dynamic. He understands the mindset of an athlete really well, due to which he does not pile on unnecessary pressure on me at any point. He always makes sure that I am not frustrated and helps me manage tough situations in training really well. So, we are focused on improving as much as we can ahead of the Diamond League in Doha.”

Chopra, who won the silver medal at the World Championships in 2022 that were held in Eugene, also talked about how motivated he is to compete against the best athletes in the world at the Diamond League in Doha.

The Haryana state native said, “It feels great to go up against the best athletes from across the globe, it gives me a chance to test myself out against elite competitors which is always a great motivator for me. I did not participate in the previous Diamond League that was held in Doha, because I felt I had not got a chance to train enough, but this time we started our preparations on time and now I feel primed to compete in the league in Doha this year. So hopefully, we will come away with the desired result.”

“Winning the gold medal at my first ever Olympics in Tokyo does also serve as a great motivator for me, especially since my overall experience of the games was wonderful. I am sure people’s expectations of me will be higher for the 2024 Paris Olympics, but I will take that in my stride and will convert those expectations and pressure into motivators.

“I have also learned a great deal since that gold medal in Tokyo of how to handle the pressure and maintain focus. We put in a lot of work to compete at the Tokyo games, so I will be looking to work even harder for the Paris Games so that we can come home with another medal from the Olympics,” he concluded.

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