Neeraj Chopra confirmed to defend his Asian Games crown in Japan later this year

Bhubaneswar: Indian javelin throw superstar Neeraj Chopra will compete in the Asian Games in Japan in September-October in his bid to defend the title, Athletics Federation of India's (AFI) selection committee chairman Adille Sumariwalla confirmed on Saturday.

Recovering from a lower back injury he had sustained before the Tokyo World Championships in September 2025, Chopra made a late start to the season at the Doha Diamond League where he finished fourth with a throw of 85.69m.

Asian Games squad to be named soon

The 28-year-old two-time Olympic medallist has already confirmed participation in the Commonwealth Games but has not unequivocally said that he will compete in the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya from September 19 to October 4.

"Yes. He (Chopra) will participate both in the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games. He has qualified already and he is recovering. He has done 86m (85.69m) in his very first event, which is fantastic," Sumariwalla told PTI in an exclusive interview.

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"He won a gold with 88m (in 2022 Asian Games in China), so he is already close to 86m, then we see no reason why he will not do well in both the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games." The AFI's selection committee is expected to name the Indian team for the Asian Games on Sunday, the last day of the ongoing National Inter-State Senior Athletics Championships here.

Chopra had won gold in the last edition of the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, in 2023, with a throw of 88.88m.

In Aichi-Nagoya, Chopra is expected to face rising Sri Lankan star Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage, who breached the 90m mark earlier this year and won two Diamond League titles, including in Doha where Chopra finished fourth.

Pakistan's Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem could also be in the mix, which will make the Asian Games men's javelin throw highly competitive. Nadeem is also the reigning Asian and Commonwealth Games champion. He, however, pulled out of the Doha Diamond League on June 19 after the organisers initially announced his name. The AFI has, however, left it to Chopra on whether he wants to participate in any event before the Commonwealth Games to be held in Glasgow from July 23 to August 2.

Chopra was earlier named in the 32-member Indian team for the Commonwealth Games.

"We have left it to him (about competition before CWG), we are saying his medical team, his coach, everyone will sit together and work out which are the best competitions he needs to compete," said Sumariwalla, a former president of the AFI and currently a vice president of World Athletics.

"The important thing was for him to qualify, which he did. Now the important thing is that how do we make him peak at the Commonwealth Games as well as in the Asian Games."