Anderson Peters withdraws from Neeraj Chopra Classic due to an ankle injury

Two-time World Championship gold-medallist javelin thrower Anderson Peters on Tuesday pulled out of the Neeraj Chopra Classic due to an ankle injury, dealing another blow to the showpiece.

The 27-year-old Grenada stalwart, who had taken the bronze medal behind Neeraj at the Paris Olympics last year, has been replaced by Poland's Cyprian Mrzygłód in the event schedule for Saturday.

Mrzygłód is a 2019 European U23 champion and his best throw of 84.97 metres came during the event.

"Anderson Peters has been ruled out of the Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025 due to an ankle injury sustained during his last competition. Poland's Cyprian Mrzygłód has been named as his replacement in the final lineup," the organisers said a statement.

Organised by double Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra in collaboration with JSW Sports and sanctioned by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), the world-class event featuring 12 javelin throwers, including five Indians, has already seen three replacements.

Peters has had a long rivalry with Chopra with the Grenada athlete. He successfully defended his World Championships title in 2022, defeating Neeraj with three throws over 90 metres. Peters then went on to win a silver medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, where Neeraj did not compete.

On Monday, Indian thrower Kishore Jena, struggling with an ankle injury, had pulled out of the NC Classic and was replaced by Yashvir Singh.

On June 6, Poland's Martin Konecny had replaced Asian Games bronze medallist Genki Dean of Japan.

India's first-ever international javelin competition, originally slated for May 24, was postponed due to military tensions between India and Pakistan.

The confirmed international lineup now includes Mrzygłód, Poland's Martin Konecny, 2016 Olympic gold medallist Thomas Röhler (Germany), 2015 world champion Julius Yego (Kenya), Curtis Thompson (USA), Luiz Mauricio da Silva (Brazil), and Rumesh Pathirage (Sri Lanka).

The Indian contingent will feature Asian Championships silver medallist Sachin Yadav, Rohit Yadav, and Sahil Silwal, Yashvir Singh besides Neeraj.

The event, granted Category A status by World Athletics, is considered a "dream project" of Chopra and aims to establish India as a credible host of elite-level athletics events.