Neeraj Chopra Finishes 8th, Sachin Yadav 4th in 2025 World Athletics Javelin Final; Keshorn Walcott Leads in Tokyo

It was a day of upsets and surprises at the Japan National Stadium in Tokyo on September 18, 2025, as the men’s javelin throw final at the World Athletics Championships turned into a high-stakes battle—just not the one most fans expected. Defending world champion Neeraj Chopra finished in eighth place with a best throw of 84.03m, missing out on a medal and ending hopes of back-to-back titles. The battle that wasn’t: India vs Pakistan fizzles out The much-hyped face-off between India’s Neeraj Chopra and Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem didn’t quite live up to its billing. Nadeem, who famously clinched gold at the Paris Olympics last year with a monster 92.97m effort (beating Chopra’s 89.45m), failed to find his rhythm in Tokyo. He managed only 82.73m and 82.75m on his first two attempts and fouled his third, ultimately finishing outside the top eight and getting eliminated before the final rounds. It was a dramatic fall for Nadeem, who had been tipped as a favorite. Chopra started with a solid 83.65m, then improved to 84.03m on his second throw but slipped down the standings after fouling his third attempt. By halfway through the final, he found himself in eighth position—well outside medal contention and under real pressure to deliver something special. Sachin Yadav stuns with personal best While big names struggled, it was India’s Sachin Yadav who provided a spark of excitement for Indian fans. In only his first World Championships final appearance, Yadav unleashed a massive throw of 86.29m early in the competition—his personal best—to briefly take an impressive fourth place among some of the world’s best. At the top of the leaderboard, Trinidad and Tobago’s Keshorn Walcott led the field, keeping steady under pressure from Germany’s Julian Weber and Grenada’s Anderson Peters (both former world champions themselves). The seasoned field made every attempt count. For Chopra, there will be disappointment at missing out on defending his crown—and becoming only the third man in history after Jan Zelezny (now his coach) and Anderson Peters to win consecutive world titles—but today belonged to new faces and new stories. As dust settles on Tokyo’s javelin runway, it’s clear: no script is ever truly safe at the World Athletics Championships.