More than seven years ago, Neeraj Chopra, then just a precocious talent, posted a picture of himself with three-time Olympic champion and world record holder Jan Zelezny. “Met my favourite javelin thrower Jan Zelezny,” he wrote.
On Saturday, Neeraj, now a two-time Olympic medallist and reigning world champion, roped in the Czech Republic great as coach. This was necessitated after Klaus Bartonietz, who oversaw the champion javelin thrower’s rise to stardom, called it quits.
“Growing up, I admired Jan’s technique and precision and spent a lot of time watching videos of him. He was the best in the sport for so many years, and I believe that working with him will be invaluable because our throwing styles are similar, and his knowledge is unmatched,” Neeraj said in a sports ministry statement.
“It’s an honour to have Jan by my side as I push towards the next level in my career, and I can’t wait to get started,” he added.
The announcement surprised many. That’s because Neeraj did not have trials with Zelezny, which is very important to gauge whether they share the same wavelength.
However, Neeraj was always a fan of Zelezny, and after Bartonietz made up his mind to go back to his home country (Germany) to spend more time with his family, the 26-year-old superstar straightaway zeroed in on the 58-year-old Zelezny.
Like always the coach’s salary would be borne by the sports ministry’sTarget Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS).
“I have already spoken about Neeraj as a great talent many years ago. When I saw him early in his career, I realised great possibilities for top results. I also said that if I should start to coach somebody from outside Czechia, my first choice would be Neeraj.
“There have been many athletes contacting me for coaching, so for me to take this up means that it is a great honour to have him in my team. We are getting to know each other more closely and will start in person at a traditional winter camp in South Africa,” Zelezny said.
Zelezny, a gold medalist at the 1992, 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games, has five of the top-10 best throws of all time and broke the world record on four occasions en route to claiming the current undisputed mark of 98.48m, in Germany, in 1996.
Neeraj is yet to breach the 90m mark and has set that as his main target in 2025, the year he will also have to defend his World Championship gold.
