Bengaluru: Neeraj Chopra might be feeling the “massive weight of expectations” as he prepares to defend his javelin gold in the upcoming Paris Olympics, reckons legendary New Zealand shot putter Valerie Adams.
In the Tokyo Games, Chopra became the first Indian athlete to win the track and field gold, finding a distance of 87.58 meters with his javelin.
“There’s undoubtedly immense pressure on Neeraj Chopra as he goes out there and try to defend (the gold). I’m sure he can feel it. The noise can be overwhelming,” said
However, Adams, ambassador of the TCS World 10K, said that a seasoned performer like Neeraj will find a way to ward off the pressure and perform.
“Neeraj is seasoned. He knows precisely what needs to be done. He’ll know what his training looks like, where his competitions are, and what needs to do be done to make sure that he’s on the right track leading into this (Olympics,” said Adams a two-time Olympic gold winner in 2008 and 2012, during a media interaction. He, though, urged Neeraj to remain cautious about the expectations around him.
“It’s (title defence) a very difficult thing to do. It’s every four years but also you know, when you are fantastic everybody loves you but when you don’t, sometimes you suffer from something called tall poppy syndrome and as has a negative impact on you.