Neeraj Chopra and Avinash Sable Gear Up for Historic Brussels Diamond League Final

India's Neeraj Chopra and Avinash Sable are set to make history at the Brussels Diamond League Final 2024. The event, taking place in Belgium, will see Chopra compete in javelin and Sable in the 3000m steeplechase. This marks the first time two Indian athletes have qualified for a Diamond League Final.

India's two-time Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra and steeplechaser Avinash Sable are set to make history by participating in the Brussels Diamond League Final 2024. The much-anticipated events will take place in Belgium, commencing on Friday.

Avinash Sable is slated to compete in the 3000m steeplechase at 12:39 AM IST on September 14, as per Olympics.com. Meanwhile, Neeraj Chopra's javelin throw event will begin at 1:52 AM IST on September 15.

This marks a historic moment as it is the first time two Indian athletes have qualified for a Diamond League Final. Neeraj Chopra, who won the Final in 2022 and secured second place in 2023, has had a successful record in the Diamond League.

In the 2024 season, Chopra accumulated 14 points over two meets, finishing fourth in the overall standings. He placed second in both the Doha leg in May and the Lausanne event last month.

Grenada's Anderson Peters dominated the javelin standings with 29 points, followed by Germany's Julian Webber with 21 points, and the defending champion Jakub Vadlejch of Czechia, who finished third with 16 points. Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan, a gold medallist at the Paris 2024 Olympics, competed only once this year and did not qualify for the Brussels final. Avinash Sable finished 14th in the Diamond League standings for the 3000m steeplechase, collecting three points from two meetings.

Nevertheless, Sable secured a spot in the top 12 due to four higher-ranked athletes being ruled out of the tournament. Sable set a national record time of 8:09.91 in the Paris leg of the Diamond League in July, where he finished sixth, and he was 14th in the Silesia leg in August.

The competition in Brussels promises to be fierce, with notable athletes like Morocco's Soufiane Bakkali, a two-time Olympic champion, and Kenya's Abraham Kibiwot, a bronze medallist at Paris 2024, also competing in the 3000m steeplechase.

(With inputs from agencies.)