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By Ishaan Kapoor — 8 August 2026 — 3 min read

Ashish Yadav, a 19-year-old from Mawaiya, Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, has secured a silver medal in the men’s javelin throw at the World Athletics U20 Championships in Eugene, USA. His throw of 74.09m marked India’s first medal at the event. This achievement places him as the second Indian to win silver in this event, following Neeraj Chopra.

Yadav’s journey began with training near dry ponds using a wooden javelin, aspiring to emulate Chopra. Despite weighing 70kg and being considered underweight for his six-feet-one-inch frame, his coach Arvind Kumar recognized his potential. Kumar noted that Yadav had thrown only 60 metres in trials when he first started training at the facility jointly operated by the Inspire Institute of Sport (IIS) and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) in Hisar.

Performance at the World Championships

Yadav’s silver medal throw of 74.09m was recorded in his third attempt. This performance was just 40cm short of his personal best of 74.49m, which he achieved at the Indian Open Throws Competition in Patiala in March. The gold medal in the event went to Jan-Hendrik Heymans of South Africa, who threw 80.50m on his sixth and final attempt, setting the season’s U20 world lead. Addison James of Dominica secured the bronze with a throw of 73.89m.

Yadav’s coach mentioned that the athlete was not entirely satisfied with his performance, having aimed for a larger throw. However, he was not entirely downbeat either. This medal marks India’s first in javelin throw at the Junior World Championships since Chopra’s record-setting throw of 86.48m in 2016.

Other Indian Athletes’ Progress

Other Indian athletes also made notable progress at the championships. Pooja Singh, a national senior record holder, successfully qualified for the women’s high jump final after clearing 1.79m. All 14 athletes who cleared this height across two qualification groups advanced to the final. Singh holds the national senior record of 1.93m.

In the men’s long jump, both Shahnavaz Khan and Jithin Arjuna advanced to the finals. Khan finished fourth in qualification Group A and fifth overall with a 7.73m jump. Arjuna secured the last available spot, finishing 12th overall with a 7.57m jump. Daniele Inzoli of Italy was the only athlete to breach the automatic qualification distance of 8m with an effort of 8.15m.

Mohommed Ashfaq finished eighth in the men’s 400m final with a time of 46.20 seconds, after setting a new U20 national record of 45.81 seconds in the heats. T Dharanidharan, another Indian participant in the men’s javelin throw finals, finished sixth with a throw of 72.35m.

Influence of Neeraj Chopra

Chopra, who won gold at the U20 World Championships 10 years ago in Bydgoszcz, Poland, has significantly influenced the sport in India. His success is credited with creating a wave of interest in javelin throw. Yadav, the son of a milkman, is among the athletes inspired by Chopra.

Yadav reportedly watches clips of Chopra to improve his technique and has even trained with him in South Africa in 2024. Chopra himself lauded Yadav’s achievement on X, stating, “Super proud of you, Ashish, on your Silver at the U-20 Worlds; this is just the start!”

India currently has four male athletes in the top 20 of the javelin throw rankings: Neeraj Chopra (6th), Sachin Yadav (8th), Rohit Yadav (16th), and Yash Vir Singh (19th). This growth is largely attributed to Chopra’s impact on the sport.

Yadav’s performance is particularly notable given his recovery from a knee injury and the mental disappointment of finishing fifth at the U20 Asian Championships in Hong Kong, where he faced visa and dietary challenges.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com