From a small village in Haryana to the Olympics stage: How Neeraj Chopra’s uncles, family led him to success – Times of India

One of the best Indian athletes today, Neeraj Chopra won his second successive Olympic medal on August 9, 2024. Neeraj Chopra, who won a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, won a silver medal this time at the 2024 Paris Olympics. While Neeraj missed out on defending his gold medal at the Paris Olympics this time by landing behind Arshad Nadeem from Pakistan, nonetheless he is an inspiration to over a billion Indians by winning two successive Olympic medals.

But, just as Rome was not built in a day, it was Neeraj Chopra’s years of hard work, dedication and the immense support of his uncles and family that ultimately led him to success. Meet Neeraj Chopra’s pillar of strength, his family here:
From a small village in Haryana to the Olympics stage

Neeraj Chopra, the eldest grandson of the Chopra family, was born on December 24, 1997, to Satish Chopra and Saroj Devi in Khandra village of Panipat district in Haryana. Born into a family of farmers, Neeraj spent his carefree childhood days in a joint family of 19 members which included his three uncles– Surinder, Bhim and Sultan. As the eldest grandson, Neeraj was a much-pampered child who was quite overweight. And it was his health, which was a major concern for his father and uncles that prompted them to enroll him at a nearby gym. It was his uncle Surinder Chopra who took a young Neeraj to a local gym with the simple intention of getting him fit. However, when the gym shut down his family decided to take him to Shivaji Stadium in Panipat to work out. Soon, Neeraj too started enjoying working out and it was there when he was first introduced to javelin throw– a sport that changed his life forever.
Recalling Neeraj’s childhood days in their joint-family set-up and how he developed an interest in sports early on in life because of his uncles, makes them very proud. Talking about it, Neeraj’s uncle Bhim Chopra- who played a key role in Neeraj’s life– told The Week back in 2022, “We do not have a sporting background, we are farmers… He was the eldest grandson in the family and was pampered a lot. He put on weight as a child. My younger brother Surinder took him to a local gym, but it shut down soon after. We then decided to take him to the Panipat stadium. The idea was to focus on his fitness and he soon started enjoying the workouts. It was there that he met Jaiveer, who introduced Neeraj to javelin.”

Highlighting this turning point in Neeraj’s life, author Tanushree Podder writes in her new book ‘Golden Sportspersons’, ‘It was the year 2010, and the 13-year-old Neeraj had no training in javelin throw. Yet, he hurled the javelin to a distance of 40 metres. His throw impressed Jaiveer, and the javelin thrower took the boy under his wing. But Jaiveer soon left for Jalandhar, and Neeraj’s practice came to a halt. By now, he was serious about his training. So, at 14, Neeraj moved to Panchkula, where he practiced on a synthetic track at Tau Devi Lal Sports Complex for the first time and trained under coach Naseem Ahmad’. And the rest, as they say, is history.
As Neeraj’s interest in the sport increased and he started pursuing it professionally, the elders in his family decided to put him in an open school so that he could focus on the sport– a bold step to take even today.
Truly then, Neeraj’s entire family has been the wind beneath his wings that propelled him in the right direction, at the right time. “When one’s child achieves success and brings glory to the nation, there are no words to express the happiness of parents and the entire family. We live in a joint family and we are four brothers. Neeraj (Chopra) has been lucky in the sense that he got full support from his entire family, who constantly encouraged and motivated him to pursue his passion,” his proud father Satish Chopra told the media back in 2021 when Neeraj Chopra had won his first gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which was also his debut Olympics.
His friend, coach, and brother Jaiveer too have been a constant in his journey to success. Over the years, Neeraj has trained under some of the best coaches in the world but Jaiveer continues to be his go-to person even today. Revealing this, Neeraj’s uncle Satish Chopra further told The Week, “He (Jaiveer) pushed Neeraj in the right direction… He is both a coach and a brother to Neeraj.”
Meanwhile, his mother Saroj Devi too has been a constant pillar of strength and a source of comfort and understanding for the Olympian. Considering his rigorous training and work commitments, Neeraj doesn’t get too much time to spend at home– but his mother, a homemaker, doesn’t complain and supports him from afar. In an emotional moment, after returning from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics Neeraj removed his gold medal and put it around his mother Saroj’s neck first and then his father while meeting them at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in New Delhi back in 2021– an action that marked a tribute to their immense sacrifices over the years.
The Chopras have an unspoken rule of not attending Neeraj’s competitions, lest he gets distracted from his goal.
Neeraj also has two younger sisters– Sangeeta and Savita.