The Tokyo Olympics gold-medallist said he was deeply hurt to see his integrity being questioned in abusive social media posts.
Neeraj Chopra (left) with Arshad Nadeem at the World Athletics C’ship in 2023. Pic/AP, PTI
India’s star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra on Friday said he has been bombarded with ‘hate and abuse’ for inviting Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem to next month’s Neeraj Chopra Classic in Bengaluru, clarifying that the Olympic champion’s presence was now ‘completely out of question’ in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack.
The Tokyo Olympics gold-medallist said he was deeply hurt to see his integrity being questioned in abusive social media posts. “After all that has taken place over the last 48 hours, Arshad’s presence at the NC Classic was completely out of the question. My country and its interests will always come first,” Chopra said in a lengthy post on X.
“I usually am a man of few words, but that doesn’t mean I will not speak up against what I think is wrong. More so when it comes to questioning my love for our country, and the respect and honour of my family. The invitation I extended to Arshad was from one athlete to another — nothing more, nothing less,” he added. Chopra said that the invites for the tournament were sent out on Monday, a day before the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir which left 26 people dead,
mostly tourists.
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