The recently concluded Under-20 World Games in Bydgoszcz, Poland saw a wide array of fierce competitors all vying for the coveted "World Champion" title in their respective sports.

Among these young crop of athletes stood an 18-year-old Neeraj Chopra of Haryana competing for the championship in javelin throw. Little did he know that he was to become an overnight sensation at the conclusion of this games.

Not only did the young lad notch up India's first athletic victory at the World Games, but did so in grand fashion by breaking the all time under-20 javelin throw record by a margin of two metres. The record was previously held by Latvia's Zigismunds Sirmais who threw an impressive 84.69m.

Chopra's throw of 86.48m will certainly stand the test of time at the under-20 level. This comes on the backdrop of his failure to qualify for the Rio Games where athletes are expected to throw the Olympic standard of 83m to qualify.

This victory would certainly boost the confidence of the youngster as he has a long way to go and this is just the beginning of greater things to come.
One interesting incident from the Games as Neeraj recalls is that during the customary victory lap that the champions undertake, he realised that he did not have the Indian Flag along with him and neither did anyone from the coaching staff and to add to his misery, he could not spot an Indian spectator in the crowd from whom he could borrow the flag. So, he had to make do with his jersey which had the Indian Flag printed on it's back.

He said that it was a proud moment for him when the Indian Nation Anthem was played in front of an international audience and that made him more happy than his personal achievement.

When asked about his future plans, Neeraj said that the next few months would involve a lot of training and went on to add that his kit would also include an Indian Flag from now on.

Kudos to the young lad for making the country proud and we only hope that he wins more accolades and laurels for the country.