By SportSupport Desk · 2026-05-12 · 6 min read
When Neeraj Chopra's javelin landed at 87.58m in Tokyo, it ended a 100-year wait for an Indian athletics gold and reshaped how the country invests in track and field.
Athletics Federation of India (AFI) and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) have since funnelled record funding into javelin pathways across Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, with TOPS support reaching dozens of junior throwers.
The ripple effect is visible at Khelo India Youth Games, where the U-21 javelin field now routinely crosses 70m — a benchmark that was rare a decade ago.