Tokyo 2020 gold medalist gifts winning javelin to Olympic Museum

India’s Neeraj Chopra won Olympic gold in Tokyo 2020 with a winning javelin toss of 87.58m in the second round. A toss nearly a full meter farther than the silver medalist Jakub Vadlejch’s best effort. It was a historic win for Chopra and India as well.

Chopra’s gold medal was the first track medal ever for India, and the first in over a century for an athlete from that region of Asia.

Clearly, it was a toss worthy of being remembered for generations to come. To that end, Chopra has donated his gold medal winning javelin to the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland.

“It was an honor to visit and donate my Tokyo 2020 javelin to the Olympic Museum,” Chopra posted on Twitter. “I hope its presence can inspire the younger generation to keep working hard towards their dreams.”

The Olympic Museum is managed by the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Heritage team to securing Olympic legacy.

Chopra’s javelin will join another artifact of India’s Olympic history, the rifle of Abhinav Bindra, the first Indian to win an individual Olympic gold medal. He won his in Beijing 2008 and was very emotional to know his rifle has a new neighbor.

“I am delighted that his javelin will now join my rifle at the Olympic Museum, which as been a bit lonely in terms of Indian company so far,” he said.

Chopra hopes both his javelin and Bindra’s rifle are only the beginning for Indian athletes at the Olympics.

“I can see Bindra’s rifle at the museum which gives me tremendous motivation. I hope my javelin has the same impact on future athletes, especially from India,” Chopra said to PTI.