I competed in Lausanne with fitness concerns: Neeraj Chopra

Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra on Monday admitted that he was in a quandary whether to go full throttle in Lausanne because he was returning from an injury and his fitness level was still not at the desired level. The star javelin thrower clinched his second consecutive Diamond League title on June 30 by hurling the spear to 87.66m — an effort that was not close to his best in recent past. After the event, Chopra said that his next competition will be in Budapest. It means that he may miss a couple of international events before that. The Hungarian capital of Budapest will host the World Athletics Championships from August 19 to 27. The javelin throw competition begins with the qualification round on August 25. ”Overall, my fitness level was a bit low (in Lausanne). Because of the injury, there was a question mark on my mind also whether I am 100 per cent fit or not, whether I have to push myself or not,” Chopra said during a virtual media interaction. ”I need to improve my fitness, work on it (fitness) through training so that I can give my best at the World Championships and fulfil the dream of winning gold there. ”I will not say I am happy but I am satisfied with my throw (which is not among his 10-career best performances) under the circumstances — weather and that I am coming back from injury.” The 25-year-old Chopra, who had also won the season-opening Diamond League in Doha on May 5, had sustained a muscle strain while training, which he had announced on May 29. He said saving himself from injury will be his main goal this season as three major competitions — World Championships in August, Diamond League Finals in September and Asian Games in October — are lined up. ”I have to go with 100 per cent fitness in these events. If I am not physically fit, I will also be not mentally ready. Not only the physical aspect, the mental aspect is also important,” he said.