00:00What do you make of the field in West Japan?
00:06I think it's a terrific field. I mean, this is a world championship. You now want to get a weak field.
00:12And looking at the entire world championship till now, you had many, many surprise results.
00:17And so, I think everybody is expecting expected results.
00:21For India, I mean, it will be wonderful if Meeraj again wins.
00:24I mean, he's the winning world champion. And if he retains his crown, there's nothing better than that.
00:29But when you look at Anderson, when you look at Webber, when you look at Arshad, these are guys who are big champions.
00:36And when they come there, they understand the opportunity out there for each of them.
00:40And I think the competition is, in that sense, one of the biggest competitions that Meeraj has ever faced.
00:46Which is, everybody knows that the doors are open. This is an open tournament. This is an open championship.
00:52And for the first time, you probably cannot predict a winner here.
00:57So, you have an option to complete against Parnalco for the first time since the Olympic game. Are they going to headline the event?
01:04Well, they are anyway going to headline the event. Whatever happened in Paris, you know, the gold and the silver.
01:11And it's the India versus Pakistan, which is anyway hyped up. So, the headlining actually doesn't require headlining in that sense.
01:18I mean, both of them will be there. And the entire crowd, the whole 60,000, 58,000 that's going to back in for the final.
01:25And we all hope that Meeraj, Arshad, Webber, you know, you need a big, big competition out there.
01:31So, all the big guys should actually qualify and get into the final. And if the final happens the way we are thinking it might happen,
01:38I think you are going to get a headlining event. You are going to get Neeraj up there who has understood what Nadeem is all about.
01:45And Nadeem, anyway, will have decent coaching about Neeraj and so would Webber. So, I think it's going to be a great event.
01:53Do you reckon the Asia Cup handshake row will spill over to Neeraj and Arshad?
01:59Well, let's hope not. You know, the track and field world championship is a massively pure event for track and field.
02:07And I think creating a cesspool of jingoism really doesn't work. And for a person like me who's come here
02:14and who's been to most major track and field championships, I go there for the purity.
02:18And I just hope that sport doesn't divide and it brings people together. And that's what happens across the world.
02:25And I really believe and I really hope nothing of that sort happens here. And we get a great competition.
02:30We get Neeraj winning the competition. But at the end of the day, you know, you can't predict the podium.
02:36But let's hope for an exciting and thrilling contest.
02:39Can we say that this is the first time in a major tournament that Neeraj is not heading in as the favourite?
02:46Well, let's put it this way that none of them are favourites. You know, when you come into a world championship,
02:53you please understand what happened in the 10K here. You know, the favourites didn't win.
02:58What happened with Bacali? The favourite didn't win. So, you know, when you come in here, it's not the favourite tag.
03:03It's who is going to score at that particular opportunity, who handles pressure the best.
03:08And I do believe that consistency also comes into a major factor. It becomes a major factor.
03:14Neeraj has been one of the most consistent throwers of all time. Maybe the 90 plus doesn't happen all the time like mostly it happens.
03:21But let's put it in a way that if Neeraj is consistent with the 89, 90, 91 areas, I think you're going to have a big, big championship on your hand and you might just end up with Neeraj winning it.
03:33The last time he competed in Tokyo, Neeraj won the gold medal for India in the Olympic year. Will that give him a medal in?
03:41Of course it will. You know, when you come into the stadium, you know, you feel that, okay, this is home. This is where I actually made a name.
03:48This is where I got my first Olympic gold medal. But there is an opposite side to it also. When Bakali came here for the 3000 meter steeplechage yesterday, he had won already in Tokyo.
03:57You know, that gold medal was his. He would have probably felt familiar. And in the end, he was beaten on the tape. You know, 0.07 seconds was the difference.
04:05Let's hope those differences don't come when Neeraj is competing and Neeraj actually takes in the crowd. And he is, you know, one of those champions who actually takes a lot of energy from the fans.
04:15And when 60,000 people are crammed in here, and maybe even with the weather and all the way we have been looking at the weather, it's hot, it's humid, it's steamy.
04:23And I think the competition will actually become as steamy as the weather here.
04:30Will it be one and one for Neeraj?
04:35I think so. I think most of the big guys probably just use just one throw, you know, and really doesn't go into the second one.
04:43So let's hope, I mean, that all of them cruise through the qualifying. Qualifying, usually people say it's very hard, it's very tough.
04:51But for the big guys who understand what a final is all about, I think it should be an easy one.
04:58You cannot, Shatmajeev, come up with a big throw in two years.
05:01I think everybody can come up with a big throw because 91 out here, a 90 plus out here can be a very big throw.
05:08I think sometimes even 89 plus can be a very big throw.
05:11Please understand, the palms are going to be sweaty, it's going to be humid, it's not going to be easy.
05:17This is not Europe where you get a firm grip. There's going to be sweat on your palms and anybody who can handle the weather out there is the one who's going to last.
05:25And let's hope the Indians are the ones who handle the weather better. Chopra is the man who handles the weather better.
05:31And we have him again coming back with a world championship goal.
05:36Are you in a manner of speaking, saying that Julian Webber, the world leader this year, is not really the favorite to win the gold after having won the title?
05:46As I said, nobody is the favorite in a world championship. Please understand that when you come to a world championship,
05:51you come with expectations of being on top of the podium. And for that, you can be rational sometimes.
05:57Sometimes most athletes are not going all out. They are looking at what their weaknesses are and what their strengths are.
06:03And that's what the balance is. The balance is not about going all out and trying for a 94, 93, 91 plus and then ending up with 88.
06:12You've got to be consistent with your throws. And I think Chopra has the edge there.
06:16And can all four Indians break it to the final like three of them did in Budapest?
06:22Well, in Budapest, nobody expected more than two. But yeah, DP went in, Kishore went in and that was not only a surprise,
06:30it was thrilling to see three Indians out there. Javelin will be brilliant for India if all the four go in.
06:37I mean, that's what I believe. But it's going to be tough for the rest.
06:40Yashwer, it's going to be tough. But you never know. Yashwer might come up with 84, 85. So, you know, and with four of them out there,
06:47just imagine how much of motivation that Javelin as a sport will get in our country.
06:53And the final question is, I know you've spoken a bit about the conditions in Tokyo. But let us know if you think it is conducive to good throws.
07:03It's conducive to good throws if you understand the weather, you know, and most of the runs that have happened here,
07:09and I'm talking especially of the long distances where athletes have understood what they are doing.
07:13The 10K was the slowest in World Championship history. The Javelin doesn't push itself towards, you know, being 86, 87, 88.
07:22But anybody who can probably take in that weather, understand the humidity factors, I think is the one who will probably cruise through.
07:30Anything above 90 could be a winning throw here.
07:33Thanks, Robert.
07:35Thank you. This is Sandeep Nishra at the World Championships in Tokyo for India Today.
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