2023 was a truly memorable year for Indian sport. With so much having happened, ESPN India picks ten images that tell the story of the most stunning moments we witnessed over the year. Our fourth pick is a moment of sheer ecstasy as Neeraj Chopra jumps onto the podium after winning gold at the Hangzhou Asian Games.
Neeraj Chopra was, by far, the favourite for the gold ahead of the men's javelin throw final at the Hangzhou Asian Games.
This was the reigning Olympic, World and Asian champion. He was expected steamroll his way to the top of the podium. And with his first throw, it looked like he was not only going to meet all those big expectations, but maybe even go a step further and breach the 90m barrier for the first time in his career.
Then, the bizarre stuck. His first throw seemed to cross 86m, which would've been a great start. Except it didn't count. The officials did not measure his throw and after a pause for a few minutes, Neeraj was given another chance to fling the spear, which would be counted as his first throw.
Unfortunately, his next throw was underwhelming. In fact, his best after three throws was 84.49m -- and the issue for his march-to-gold was that his compatriot Kishore Jena had taken a shock lead with an effort of 86.77m in his third throw.
Out of nowhere, the champion was under quote a bit of pressure. It was not the start he (or us) had been expecting, and considering the circumstances of his first throw not counting, he had more than enough reason to feel frustrated. After all, in such situations it's tough to keep emotions in check. But the thing with Neeraj is that despite being one of us, he is also the best of us. When Jena took the lead, Neeraj gave him a big hug with a smiling face.
Then Neeraj walked in for his fourth throw. Another ordinary effort could've been the end... but this is Neeraj Chopra. When under pressure, he doesn't do ordinary.
A slow run-up was followed by a huge cry, he knew right from the time the spear left his right hand that this was a good throw. Not just good, this was a great throw under the pressure. Before the javelin even landed on the ground, Neeraj had his arms up in celebration, minus the smile. This one was all business. There was no way the universe was going to disallow the throw and stop him from taking the lead.
The scoreboard showed 88.88m and he rose to the #1 spot, overtaking Jena. The next throw from Jena bettered his previous effort with a 87.54m, but it was not enough to retake the top place. Another hug followed between Neeraj and Jena, the two of them reveling in what would end up as that rarest of rare finishes for Indian track and field at such a big stage: a one-two finish for India.
In the end that jump onto the podium was something Indian sports fans have gotten used to, but it was all that went into making that jump - having to dig deep into his champion will - and the identity of the person that made him do it, the person who would end up standing next to him, that made it oh, so special.