Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, who created history at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 by clinching a gold medal in the men’s javelin throw final, had to leave a ceremony in Panipat midway due to high fever on Tuesday (August 17). The 23-year-old had fever when he joined the rest of the Indian contingent at Independence Day but he had tested negative for Covid-19 a few days back. At the ceremony in Panipat, Chopra got down from the stage due to fever. The ceremony was also cut short due to heatwave.
Neeraj’s friends and family confirmed to Times Now that he was looking uncomfortable during the ceremony as he attended a car rally from Delhi to Panipat which took more than six hours. The heat seems to have taken a toll on Neeraj who had also been taking medicines. Neeraj was taken to an undisclosed location for rest.
Since his arrival from Tokyo Olympics 2020, Chopra has been the center of attraction and has been attending several felicitation ceremonies in different parts of the country. Preparations were in place for a grand welcome of Neeraj in his hometown.
“He will be receiving a grand welcome, I have prepared ‘churma’ for him. We will keep his gold medal in the temple, as it is after the blessings of God that he has reached these heights. I am looking forward to his arrival,” Neeraj’s mother Saroj Devi told ANI.
Another distant relative of Neeraj said: “We have made all the preparations. The welcome will be grand and all the relatives and the whole village is invited. The gold medal will be kept in the temple and some rituals will be performed. Food preparations for around 25 to 30 thousand people have been done which needed manpower of about 150 people. The whole village is in a festive mood since the day he has won the medal.”
“It was an honour to attend the Independence Day celebrations at the historic Red Fort today. As an athlete and a soldier, my heart is full of emotion when I see the national flag flying high. Jai Hind,” Neeraj had tweeted after the Independence Day ceremony.
At the Tokyo Olympics 2020, Chopra had ended India’s wait for a medal in athletics at the quadrennial event as he threw the javelin to a distance of 87.58m to pick the yellow metal at the Games. With the historic medal, Neeraj became the second Indian athlete after Abhinav Bindra to win an Olympic gold medal in an individual event.
Neeraj’s golden throw was also listed as one of the 10 magical moments of athletics (track and field) in the Tokyo Olympics by World Athletics.
