Star Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra on November 9, 2024 roped in Jan Zelezny, one of many best the game has produced, as coach to assist put together him for the upcoming season.
| Photograph Credit score: AP
Simply days after he penned a heartfelt observe of due to long-time coach Klaus Bartonietz, Neeraj Chopra on Saturday (November 9, 2024) formally confirmed becoming a member of fingers with Czech javelin legend Jan Železný as his new coach to coach with.
Double Olympic medalist Chopra can be a part of Železný’s coaching group, the Czech Athletics Federation has confirmed, with the 2 formally met throughout the annual year-ending coaching camp at Potchefstroom, South Africa later this 12 months. Železný’s wage can be funded by the Sports activities Ministry. The affiliation, nonetheless, will solely be for the subsequent two years beginning 2025.
Železný, a three-time Olympic and World champion and the present world report holder, and Chopra share mutual admiration going again to his junior days. “Rising up, I admired Jan’s method and precision and spent a number of time watching his movies. He was the most effective for therefore a few years and I consider working with him can be invaluable as a result of our throwing types are related and his data is unmatched. It’s an honour to have Jan by my aspect as I push in direction of the subsequent stage in my profession,” Chopra stated in an announcement.
The Czech thrower coached the opposite two javelin medalists at Tokyo Olympics — Jakub Vadlejch and Vítězslav Veselý — and two-time Olympic and three-time World champion Barbora Špotáková. Vadlejch, who had been with Zelezny since 2010, nonetheless, has determined to depart the coaching group and work with Czech nationwide coach Miroslav Guzdek as an alternative.
“When arranging additional cooperation, I knowledgeable my costs that my plan is to guide the highest coaching group for 2 extra years and never your entire Olympic cycle. We agreed with Jakub that he won’t put together for the subsequent season in my group. We additionally got here to this conclusion after we couldn’t discover a consensus on the inclusion of Neeraj Chopra in our workforce,” Zelezny defined on the CAF web site.
Chopra had approached him a number of weeks in the past and Zelezny welcomed the inclusion. “I’ve already spoken about Neeraj as a terrific expertise a few years in the past. Once I noticed him early in his profession, I realised nice potentialities for high outcomes. I additionally stated that if I ought to begin to coach any individual from exterior Czechia, my first selection can be Neeraj. There have been many athletes contacting me for teaching so for me to take this up implies that it’s a nice honour to have him in my workforce.
“I additionally noticed a terrific profit for the opposite members of my group, wherein the most effective javelin throwers on the planet would encourage one another and everybody would profit from it. We’re attending to know one another extra intently and can begin in particular person at a conventional winter camp in South Africa,” he added.
Železný, who gained consecutive golds from 1992-2000 Olympics, has 5 of the highest ten throws of all time and holds the present report of 98.48m.
Printed – November 09, 2024 03:30 pm IST