Neeraj Chopra Takes Second in Lausanne Javelin
Neeraj Chopra produced a season-best throw of 88.05 metres to finish second in the men’s javelin at the Lausanne Diamond League, narrowly missing victory by just nine centimetres. Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage claimed the title with an 88.14m effort.
Neeraj Chopra Throws Season-Best 88.05m
Chopra moved into the lead with his second-round throw of 88.05m, comfortably improving on his previous best performances of the 2026 season. The mark was also his strongest throw in more than a year.
However, Pathirage responded in the third round with an 88.14m throw to move nine centimetres ahead of the two-time Olympic medallist. Neither athlete was able to improve on those marks during the remaining rounds.
Grenada’s Anderson Peters secured third place with a final-round throw of 86.69m, while Trinidad and Tobago’s Keshorn Walcott finished fourth with 83.71m.
Pathirage Edges Chopra Again in Lausanne
The Lausanne result marked the third consecutive occasion this season that the 23-year-old Pathirage has finished ahead of Chopra.
The Sri Lankan had previously beaten Chopra at the Doha Diamond League and again at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where Pathirage won gold with 89.75m and Chopra took silver with 85.83m.
Pathirage has emerged as one of the standout javelin throwers of 2026 after recording a world-leading 92.62m earlier in the Diamond League season.
Chopra Strengthens Diamond League Final Push
Despite missing out on victory, Chopra’s second-place finish delivered valuable Diamond League points and strengthened his position in the race to qualify for the season-ending final in Brussels.
The Lausanne performance also represented a significant improvement for the Indian star after a relatively subdued start to his 2026 campaign.
