Neeraj is a classic!

India’s Neeraj Chopra

Double Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra, in his own admission, is a bundle of nerves as he gets down to organising the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic - a competition featuring some of the world's best javelin stars at Bangalore's Kanteerava Stadium on May 24. "I've harboured this dream for many years, to have an international javelin competition in India. I have travelled around the world for competitions and have seen see how top events are organised and how the local people support these events. I loved being part of them and always wondered if and when we could bring to this to India for our home fans to be able watch world-class athletes. I'm glad World Athletics have given this even a Category A status," Chopra said during an online media interaction on Monday.

Coach Zelezny's suggestion

Revealing the story behind naming the event after him, he said that it was a suggestion by his Czech coach and world record holder Jan Zelezny. "I was talking to Zelezny and he said it'll be good if it's named after me. I was also inspired by some events named after famous athletes like the Mondo Classic [named after pole vault world champion Mondo Duplantis] and the Kip Keino Classic [named after Kenya's two-time Olympic champion Kipchoge Keino]," added Chopra, India's first Olympic gold medallist in track and field events.

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The humble Haryanvi is personally looking into the nitty-gritties of the event. "Earlier, I would simply turn up at an event to participate, but organising one is a huge learning. Initially, the event was planned in Panchkula, Haryana, but it had to be moved out because as per World Athletics, the stadium should have floodlights of 600 lux [measure of light intensity] for international broadcast purposes and this wasn't available. I've met the chief ministers of both Haryana and Karnataka and they've been very supportive. India is known for its hospitality so I want to give fans the best experience and for this, everything like ticketing, seating, washrooms, and other facilities are being looked into closely. Bangalore is also blessed with great weather in the evenings which will be perfect for our international participants," added Chopra, who has invited the crème de la crème of the javelin world, including former world champion Anderson Peters, former Olympic champ Thomas Rohler, former world and Olympic medallist Julius Yego, former Pan American Games champion Curtis Thompson and Paris Olympics finalist Luiz Mauricio da Silva, among others. Interestingly, Pakistan's Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem has also been invited by Chopra. But as soon as the discussion veered towards Indo-Pak rivalry, Chopra quickly clarified: "Arshad said he'll discuss with his coach and tell us, so there's no confirmation as yet."

Stepping stone for Indians

Finally, Chopra, 27, wants Indian athletes to use this event as a stepping stone for international glory. "I will be competing and there will be three-four Indians too in the fray. It's a great opportunity for them to get ranking points for the World Championships in Tokyo [in September]. Also, as this will be an annual affair, in future, I'm hoping to add other events too, like some of us [Indians] are good at long jump, then there is Avinash [Sable] in the 3000m steeplechase and the men's 100m is also seeing improved timings," concluded Chopra, who kicked off his season by winning the Potch Invitational Track event in Potchefstroom, South Africa, earlier this month with a throw of 84.52m.

If that elusive 90m throw can somehow land on home turf, it will be the icing on the cake for India's track and field superstar.