Neeraj Chopra attends ‘Thank You Tokyo!’ commemoration ceremony

Just over a year after winning a historic gold medal at Tokyo 2020, Indian javelin throw ace Neeraj Chopra was back at the National Stadium – the same venue where he became an Olympic champion – for a trip down memory lane.

Neeraj Chopra was in the Japanese capital to attend the ‘Thank You Tokyo!’ event, organised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in collaboration with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and the Japanese Olympic Committee.

‘Thank You Tokyo!’ commemorated the successful hosting of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics last year and appreciated the people of Japan for making the Summer Games a success under challenging circumstances.

Postponed by a year due to COVID-19, Tokyo 2020 was hosted in empty stadiums for safety reasons. Almost 18,000 people turned out for the ‘Thank You Tokyo!’ event to witness a series of sports initiations and demonstrations from some of the world’s top athletes.

The event also gave Neeraj Chopra the opportunity to storm down the runway of the National Stadium and hurl a javelin again, just like he did on August 4, 2021, to win India their first-ever Olympic medal in athletics.

“Had a great time at the Tokyo 2020 Commemoration Ceremony today, and it was a special feeling being back at the stadium where it all changed for me. Thank you!” Neeraj Chopra wrote.

Olympic-themed cultural activities and photo opportunities with Olympians, including Neeraj Chopra, Sydney McLaughlin, the women’s 400m hurdles gold medallist from Tokyo 2020, and women’s high jump silver medallist Nicola Olyslagers, also drew large crowds.

Children enjoyed getting their faces and nails painted with the Olympic colours and witnessed a painting performance by Paralympian and artist Gregory Burns. Crowds also gathered at the Tokyo Pride House booth, where they were able to learn more about the LGBTQ community from LGBTQ Olympian and IOC Young Leader, Javier Raya.

Fans also tried out several sports like climbing, athletics, skateboarding – a sport that made its Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020 – and breaking, which will feature for the first time at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.