Neeraj Chopra Tears Ankle Ligament, Ends 2026 Season, Skips Asian Games Defense

Neeraj Chopra's 2026 season is over. The two-time Olympic medallist announced Saturday, August 29, that he tore a ligament in his ankle during training, just over a week after throwing a season-best 88.05 meters to finish second at the Lausanne Diamond League.

"After a period of hard work, I finally felt I was gaining the momentum I had been looking for with a Season's Best throw in Lausanne," Chopra said in a statement posted to Instagram and X. "Unfortunately, shortly after, I sustained a ligament tear in my ankle during training. After discussions with my doctor and team, we've decided that I will sit out the rest of this season."

The injury takes out three major targets at once. Chopra will miss the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, next month, where he was set to defend the javelin title he won in 2018 and again in Hangzhou in 2023, according to Olympics.com. He also won't compete in the Diamond League Final in Brussels on September 5, despite having qualified with 12 points from two meets this season, and he'll skip the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championships in Budapest, scheduled for September 11-13, according to Pro Kerala.

Chopra, 28, headlined India's 492-member Asian Games contingent announced by the Sports Ministry earlier this month, according to News18. His absence removes India's most reliable gold-medal threat in track and field from that roster.

Chopra had been dealing with lower back discomfort dating back to 2023 and aggravated a disc injury in September 2025, according to Reuters reporting carried by The Star (Malaysia). That forced him into an extended rehabilitation period and delayed his 2026 return until June.

He came back at the Doha Diamond League and finished fourth with a throw of 85.69m, according to Olympics.com. He then won silver at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow with 85.83m. The Lausanne throw of 88.05m on August 21, where he finished second behind Sri Lanka's Rumesh Pathirage (88.14m), was his best mark of the year and looked like a turning point.

Instead, it was the last competitive throw of his season. "It's disappointing, especially because I felt close to finding my rhythm," Chopra said. "But as they say, setbacks are a part of the journey. My focus now is on recovering well and coming back even stronger. Thank you all for the love and support."

This marks the second consecutive year an injury has ended Chopra's season early, following the lower-back problem that sidelined him for an extended stretch starting in September 2025. A javelin thrower managing chronic back trouble is now also managing an acute ankle injury. The two are not unrelated in a sport that depends on a clean, repeatable plant-and-throw mechanic.

Reuters, in its report carried by The Star, traced the back issue to 2023 and noted Chopra went through roughly nine months of rehabilitation after competing at the Tokyo World Championships before returning in June 2026. The timeline matters: a thrower recovering from both conditions faces compounded mechanical challenges.

No source has specified the severity of the ligament tear, whether surgery is required, or a target return date. Chopra's own statement, quoted identically across News18, Rediff, Times of India, Pro Kerala and Olympics.com, says only that he will "sit out the rest of this season" and focus on recovery, without committing to a 2027 timeline.

India's javelin depth at the elite international level remains thin without him. Whether another Indian thrower steps up to fill the Asian Games slot, and how Chopra's ankle responds to treatment in the coming months, are the two open questions hanging over the sport heading into the Aichi-Nagoya Games.