A day after winning the silver medal in the Paris Olympics, javelin throw superstar Neeraj Chopra is likely to undergo surgery to treat a long-standing groin injury.
Neeraj failed to defend his Olympic gold medal after he lost to Pakistan Arshad Nadeem by a margin of over three metres on Thursday.
According to an India Today report, Neeraj's coaching team is also set for a major change and three top doctors have been identified to perform the surgery for him.
Struggling with Hernia, that has been causing him pain in his groin, led to somehow may have impacted his throw at the men's javelin final at the Paris Olympics.
Earlier, he had spoken in detail regarding his delay in surgery so as to make sure he had the best chance of compete at the Paris Olympics.
In 2022, he had first revealed about a groin injury at the World Championships. He delayed it citing Paris Olympics in mind. Even his father addressed the injury concerns while speaking to the media after the final.
After the Olympic final, Neeraj revealed he was advised surgery last year.
"I already threw 89.94m (in 2022) with this injury. When I throw, I always focus almost 50 percent on my injury. We have to focus mostly on technique, but it's really hard for me with this injury," he said.
"Doctors told me to go for surgery last year. I have been stretching myself till now.., There have been treatments since. But we will have to take a big decision," he added.
The report claims that Biomechanics expert Dr Klaus Bartonietz will no longer work with Neeraj for the entire year, but will be available only for a couple of months in a year.
Since 2019, Klaus was part of Neeraj's support staff untill Tokyo Olympics, where he secured a gold medal. The Athletics Federation of India had extended Klaus's contract until the Paris Olympics.
