Doha has a special place in Neeraj Chopra’s heart as he was able to break the 90m barrier this year in May
Navneet Singh
Doha has a special place in India’s ace javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra’s heart. Earlier this year, the 27-year-old Indian two-time Olympic and worlds medallist raised the bar to join the 90m club at the Doha Diamond League.
Breaking the 90m mark has been weighing on Chopra’s mind for the past few years. With a 90.23m throw for a second-place finish in Doha, a personal best and national record, Neeraj Chopra had expressed immense mental satisfaction to have scaled new heights.
Last week World Athletics announced the 2026 Diamond League calendar. The one-day highly competitive prize money event spanning five months across the globe will kickstart from Doha on May 8. The men’s javelin throw will feature in Doha and as usual Neeraj Chopra will like to start his season from a place that has fond memories in his sporting career.
Apart from Neeraj Chopra, India’s Asian Games champion in men’s 3,000m steeplechase, Avinash Sable, too has been on Diamond League circuit. Indian long jumper Murali Sreeshankar, triple jumper Abdulla Aboobacker and long-distance runner Gulveer Singh have also competed at the prestigious Diamond League in 2025 season and will certainly continue to rub shoulders with the best in the business in 2026 Diamond League to polish their competitive skills.
The 2026 season is a non-Olympic year. From Indian track and field perspective, Glasgow Commonwealth Games scheduled to be held from July 23 to August 2 in Scotland and Asian Games from September 19 to October 24, will be priority for a majority of athletes.
Neeraj Chopra though started his 2025 season on a positive note, but wasn’t able to defend his title at Worlds in Tokyo in September. He overall finished eighth in the men’s javelin throw final.
The discipline for the 2026 Wanda Diamond League for each of the 15 meetings which culminates in the Belgium city of Brussels on September 4 and 5, has been confirmed.
As per the World Athletics, each discipline will feature between 4 to 8 times on the road to the grand finale in Belgium.
Athletes compete in 32 different disciplines to earn valuable points in the lucrative one-day series to qualify for the Wanda Diamond League Final in Brussels on September 4-5.
Several defending champions, including sprinter Noah Lyles, pole vault world record holder Mondo Duplantis and Dutch 400m hurdles super star Femke Bol, will look forward to another exciting year. Bol might skip the 400m hurdles as she plans to focus on the 800m event.
ENDS
