Tokyo Olympics: Johannes Vetter says 'Neeraj Chopra good but not good enough to beat me'

Former World Champion and Olympic Javelin Thrower Johannes Vetter had some words of praise for Indian Javelin Thrower Neeraj Chopra with the Tokyo Olympics just around the corner starting on July 23.

Vetter is the favourite for the men's javelin event and on the other side is Chopra, one of the country's best hopes for a medal. Vetter, in a conversation organised by World Athletics, talked about Chopra saying, "He threw good throws twice this year. Above 86 metres in Finland. If he is healthy and if he is in the right shape, especially in his technique, he can throw far."

"But he has to fight with me. I am looking to throw over 90 metres in Tokyo, so it will be tough for him to beat me."

Vetter is the only man in the world to have thrown beyond 90 metres in the past 24 months. He actually has thrown that far or farther 18 times and that includes a record streak of seven competitions between April and June of this year.

Chopra and Vetter share four-hour car ride

Chopra and Vetter once shared a friendly car ride in Finland and the German recalls it while replying to a PTI question, "Neeraj is a really friendly person. We shared a car for four hours from Helsinki to Kuortane and we spoke a lot about javelin, family and other things."

"I am always interested in our cultures, our nations, how sport is going on in different countries and so on. We had some good discussions and we talked a lot," said Vetter.

Chopra also said that he enjoyed his time with Vetter as they talked about Indian food and javelin-throwing techniques.

"We had conversations about Indians and Indian food. My English is not that great but I did manage to speak something about the sport, the technique, our throws and all that," Chopra said.

Vetter focused on gold not breaking the world record

Vetter had got very close to breaking the world record last year, throwing 97.76 metres in Silesia to move to the second position on the all-time list, just 62 centimetres short of the world record set by Czech Legend Jan Zelezny. However, Vetter was quick to shun off the pressure of breaking the world record and said that winning the gold medal was his priority.

"Not really (world record). Javelin throw is difficult, technique is very tough. Everything has to come together. The wind condition will have to be perfect, the surface will have to be perfect and the technique."

"You have to think over all angles, speed, etc. I know I am actually in a very good shape, but I don't want to put that much pressure on myself. I just want to enjoy such a high-level competition."

"I just want to see how far it will go and just relax. My first priority this year is Olympic Games, not the record. But you never know."

The qualifying round for the men's javelin throw is scheduled for August 4 and the final is on August 7.

(Image Credits: @jojo_javelin - Twitter/ PTI)