Asian Games silver medallist and Olympian, Kishore Jena became the latest addition to the Indian line-up at the Neeraj Chopra Classic next month in Bengaluru, the organisers announced on Thursday. India is hosting a first-of-its kind javelin competition in the name of two-time Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra, scheduled to be held on May 24 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium.
Hailing from Odisha, Jena came to limelight after grabbing silver in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games with a personal best of 87.54m, behind gold medal winner Neeraj. He had also finished fifth in the World Athletics Championship with a 84.77m throw in 2023.
Jena thus joins other Indians Sachin Yadav, Rohit Yadav, Neeraj and Sahil Silwal in the list at Neeraj Chopra Classic.
Among the overseas stars, two-time World Champion Anderson Peters, Olympic Champion Thomas Roehler, Olympic silver medallist Julius Yego, world leader Curtis Thompson, Japan’s Genki Dean, Brazil’s Luiz Mauricio da Silva and Rumesh Pathirage of Sri Lanka will be a part of the event. The Neeraj Chopra Classic was originally scheduled to take place in Panchkula, but was later shifted to Bengaluru due to an issue with stadium floodlights.
Full list of participants at Neeraj Chopra Classic
- Neeraj Chopra (India)
- Anderson Peters (Grenada)
- Thomas Rohler (Germany)
- Julius Yego (Kenya)
- Curtis Thompson (USA)
- Genki Dean (Japan)
- Luiz Mauricio da Silva (Brazil)
- Rumesh Pathirage (Sri Lanka)
- Sachin Yadav (India)
- Rohit Yadav (India)
- Sahil Silwal (India)
- Kishore Jena (India)
All about Neeraj Chopra Classic
Inspired by Mondo Classic, named after pole vaulter Armand “Mondo” Duplantis, the Neeraj Chopra Classic has got an ‘A’ category or Continental Tour Gold-level tag by the World Athletics. It will also be the first top-tier international competition in athletics.
Meanwhile, Neeraj Chopra kicked off his 2025 season with a gold medal at the Potch Invitational event in South Africa. He will next compete at the Doha Diamond League on May 16 before arriving in India for Neeraj Chopra Classic.
