Two-time Olympic medalist Neeraj Chopra managed to qualify for the Diamond League final even though he participated in only two out of five events this season. His 12 points were sufficient to secure sixth place in the final, which will take place in Brussels on September 4th and 5th. Even after missing the Diamond League event in Zurich, his accumulated points ensured his spot in the tournament.
At each stage of the Diamond League in the men's javelin throw discipline, points are awarded to the eight best athletes: the winner receives eight points, and the athlete finishing eighth receives one point. Six athletes with the highest number of points after the qualification round pass through to the final.
This season, Neeraj Chopra participated in two meetings. At the Diamond League in Doha, he finished fourth with a best throw of 85.69 meters. Subsequently, his performance improved in Lausanne, where he took second place, achieving his best seasonal throw of 88.05 meters.
While Neeraj Chopra was absent from the Diamond League in Zurich, Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage from Sri Lanka demonstrated outstanding play, making a powerful throw of 92.07 meters. This was the second longest throw of his career. Earlier in June, he achieved a throw of 92.62 meters at the Diamond League in Rome.
In Zurich, Rumesh Pathirage made throws of 88.23 meters on his second attempt, 89.90 meters on his third, and 92.07 meters on his last. Thanks to this impressive performance, he secured first place in the qualification standings with 39 points. Anderson Peters won second place in Zurich, posting his best seasonal throw of 86.93 meters, while David Wegner from Poland took third place with a result of 85.16 meters.
List of javelin throwers who qualified for the final:
- Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage (Sri Lanka) - 39 points
- Anderson Peters (Grenada) - 35 points
- Keshorn Walcott (Trinidad and Tobago) - 23 points
- Curtis Thompson (USA) - 20 points
- Julius Ego (Kenya) - 13 points
- Neeraj Chopra (India) - 12 points
In 2026, Rumesh Pathirage is showing excellent results: he participated in five Diamond League meetings this season and won four of them. He only finished second in Rabat. This year, the 23-year-old Sri Lankan athlete has two throws over 90 meters and seven throws over 88 meters, making him one of the strongest contenders for the final in Brussels.
Meanwhile, Rohit Yadav from India achieved a personal best by throwing 87.68 meters at the Continental Tour Silver Meet in Bhubaneswar. He did not participate in any Diamond League meetings this year, but it is expected that he will perform well at the Asian Games.
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