The Neeraj Chopra Classic will now be held on July 5 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru, it was announced on Tuesday. The World Athletics 'A' category event was originally supposed to be held on May 24, but was then postponed due to cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan in early May.
With the new date now being announced, The Neeraj Chopra Classic javelin throw competition is a World Athletics 'A' category event, with it being classified as a Continental Tour Gold-level meet, carrying significant ranking points for athletes.
On the original date when it was supposed to happen, there was confirmation that Paris Olympics bronze medallist Anderson Peters, former Olympic champion Thomas Rohler, former world champion Julius Yego, Brazil's Luiz Mauricio Da Silva, the USA's Curtis Thompson, Japan's Roderick Genki Dean and India's Sachin Yadav and Kishore Jena would be among those competing, alongside Neeraj himself.
Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem had originally been invited, Neeraj confirmed in a press conference in April. Nadeem had declined that invitation due to his participation in the Asian Athletics Championships. However, Neeraj has since released a statement that due to recent events concerning India and Pakistan, Nadeem's participation in the event was "completely out of the question".
How many of those will actually confirm their participation for the rescheduled event remains to be seen, with there being plenty of high-level competition around the world in June. Neeraj's participation at the Golden Spike meet in Ostrava on June 24 is confirmed, while he could also be in action the week before, with at the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku on June 17. There is also a javelin event at the Paris Diamond League meeting on June 20.
The rescheduled NC Classic now puts the onus athletes to rejig their calendars in what is already a long season until the World Championships at the beginning of September. However, for Neeraj as the driver behind the NC Classic, and for the young Indians getting to compete against world class stars, this is a massive opportunity in the spotlight for them.