'90m Is The Magical Mark': Anju Bobby George Explains What Neeraj Chopra Needs To Do To Defend His Gold In Paris

Former Indian athlete Anju Bobby George has said that 90m is the magical mark and if Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Neeraj Chopra manages to breach that distance, he will be able to defend his gold. At the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, 87.58m was the magical figure that etched Neeraj's name in India's eternal sporting history.But at the Paris Olympics, all the big-ticket athletes that missed out on a podium in Tokyo will come in with renewed vigour and will ensure that things are not easy for Neeraj. George believes the Tokyo Olympics gold medalist might have to go past his 87.58m mark to defend his gold, and probably hit the elusive 90m mark."The 90 meters is the magical mark. There are two who crossed the mark and Jakub Vadlejch from Czech is more consistent, he can also go past 90 meters. But I think 89 meters will be the gold-medal mark and if Neeraj can throw that, he could win it back-to-back," George said while speaking on JioCinema.The Tokyo Olympics gold medalist, who is also the reigning world champion, has taken part in only three events this year and is ranked fourth in this season's list.For Neeraj, going into the Paris Olympics, the dynamics will heavily change. Not many at the world level expected him to win a gold on debut, that too beating the best in business. But an Olympic medal and multiple other achievements later, he is the cynosure of everyone's eyes, not just in India, but across the world. "It's a different mindset when he's the hunter, and now he's the hunted. One example that instantly comes to mind is PV Sindhu. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, she was relatively unknown and then went on to win the silver medal," former India hockey player Viren Rasquinha said. Neeraj will be seen in action on August 6 during the qualification rounds of men's javelin.