By Rahul Sadhu

Copyright timesnownews

World Athletics Championships 2025: Neeraj Chopra will aim to become only the third men’s javelin thrower in history to defend the World Championships gold as he begins his campaign with the qualifiers on Wednesday. Carrying the weight of expectations on his broad shoulders as the lone Indian medal prospect in the athletics showpiece, Chopra will have his task cut out when he takes the field. Also joining him will be the trio of Sachin Yadav, Yashvir Singh and Rohit Yadav. Chopra, who had won gold in the 2023 edition in Budapest, had launched a throw of 88.17m, while Pakistan’s reigning Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem (87.82m) and the Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch (86.67m) stood second and third, respectively. If the two-time Olympic medallist Indian wins gold on Thursday, the day of the finals, he will go on to become the third man ever to win the world championships javelin title in two consecutive editions. But before that will be the challenge of the qualification round. Those who reach the automatic qualifying mark of 84.50m or the best 12 will make it to the final round to be held on Thursday. World Athletics Championships 2025: Neeraj Chopra Javelin Throw Schedule Event: Men’s Javelin Throw Qualifying Round Date: Wednesday, September 17, 2025 Time: 3:40 PM IST World Athletics Championships 2025: Where to Watch Neeraj Chopra Javelin Throw Live in India? Neeraj Chopra and his javelin throw event will be live on Star Sports Network on TV. Fans can live stream the event on Disney+ Hotstar.