Neeraj Chopra delivers season-best but finishes 2nd by 9cm at Lausanne Diamond League - Firstpost

Neeraj Chopra finished second at the Lausanne Diamond League with a season-best throw of 88.05m, missing out on the top spot by just nine centimetres. Sri Lanka's Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage continued his impressive 2026 campaign, winning the event with an 88.14m effort. The result extended Chopra's wait for a victory, with his last win coming at the Neeraj Chopra Classic in Bengaluru in July 2025. However, his return to the 88m range will be a major positive, particularly after a difficult start to the season. Also Read | India's singles woes on display at 2026 BWF World Championships as Sindhu and Lakshya underperform Before Lausanne, Chopra had competed in just two events in 2026 -- finishing fourth at the Doha Diamond League and second at the Commonwealth Games -- without crossing the 86m mark in either competition. He opened in Lausanne with an 83.54m throw, while Pathirage immediately established himself as the early leader with 85.99m before improving to 87.06m on his second attempt. 🚨 Watch Neeraj Chopra register a season-best!! He finished 2nd with a season-best throw of 88.05m, came in his second attempt.#Athletics #Neerajchopra #AthleticsIndia pic.twitter.com/r8N8pAJOmP — nnis Sports (@nnis_sports) August 21, 2026 Chopra responded strongly with his second throw, producing 88.05m to improve his previous season's best by 2.23m and move into contention for the title. Pathirage, however, reclaimed the lead with his third attempt, sending the javelin 88.14m to secure another victory. Neither athlete was able to better those marks in the remaining rounds, leaving Chopra to settle for second place. Overall standings stand with Pathirage topping with a throw of 88.14m, followed by Neeraj at 88.05m. Anderson Peters finished third with 86.69m, while Keshorn Walcott recorded 83.71m for fourth place. Also Read | India spin coach assures Kuldeep Yadav's in 'scheme of things' for Colombo Test vs SL Marc Anthony Minichello (80.06m), Curtis Thompson (78.13m), Jakub Vadlejch (77.32m), Artur Felfner (74.84m) and Simon Wieland (73.23m) completed the top nine.