From Training Alongside Neeraj Chopra to Replacing Him: Yashvir Singh’s Asian Games Opportunity

When Neeraj Chopra was ruled out of the upcoming Asian Games because of injury, Indian athletics lost its biggest star. But his withdrawal has opened the door for another javelin thrower whose journey has been closely connected with Chopra's own rise.

Yashvir Singh Tanwar, the 24-year-old from Haryana, has been named as Chopra's replacement in India's 77-member athletics squad for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. The opportunity comes barely weeks after Yashvir shared the Commonwealth Games podium with Chopra, winning bronze in the men's javelin throw.

For Yashvir, the Asian Games selection represents another major step in a career that began with a bamboo javelin and was shaped by a family deeply connected to the sport.

Born on October 22, 2001, in Devsar village near Bhiwani, Haryana, Yashvir grew up in a region better known for producing boxers. His sporting journey, however, took a different direction. His father, Rai Singh, was a national-level javelin thrower, an Indian Railways champion and later a sports coach. That background naturally introduced Yashvir to athletics.

Interestingly, javelin was not initially his first sporting preference. He was attracted to basketball before moving towards throwing events during his school years. His early training involved a bamboo javelin before he graduated to standard equipment. Under his father's guidance, his development accelerated. By 2017 and 2018, Yashvir had won gold at the U-18 national championships. A silver medal at the 2019 junior nationals then earned him a place at the national training camp.

That was where his path crossed with Chopra's. Training alongside India's future Olympic champion gave Yashvir an opportunity to observe what elite-level preparation looked like. The relationship was not simply about sharing a training environment; Chopra's success became an important benchmark for the younger thrower.

The breakthrough that announced his arrival

Yashvir's first major statement at senior level came at the 18th National Federation Cup Junior Athletics Championships in Bhopal in January 2021. At just 19, he produced a throw of 78.68m, breaking the tournament record previously held by Chopra. The performance immediately drew attention and underlined his potential.

Chopra himself congratulated the youngster after the competition, encouraging him to remain focused and treat the performance as the beginning of his journey. Yashvir continued to make progress. In 2022, he crossed the 80-metre mark for the first time, throwing 82.13m. That milestone was important because it demonstrated that he was beginning to establish himself as a genuine senior-level javelin prospect rather than simply a successful junior.

The challenge thereafter was consistency and the ability to perform against the strongest throwers in major competitions.

The 2025 season provided several important steps forward. Yashvir won the men's javelin title at the Indian Open Athletics Championships in Chennai with a throw of 77.49m. At the Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, he finished fifth while improving his personal best to 82.57m. He also won the G. Arzumanov Memorial in Tashkent and finished eighth at the Neeraj Chopra Classic in Bengaluru with 79.65m.

Those performances helped earn him qualification for the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, giving him valuable experience at the highest level of international athletics. But 2026 has been the season in which Yashvir has taken perhaps his biggest step yet.

A Commonwealth Games podium with Chopra

At the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Yashvir produced a performance that will remain one of the defining moments of his career. The men's javelin final saw two Indian athletes on the podium. Chopra won silver, while Yashvir claimed bronze behind Sri Lanka's Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage.

It was a historic double-podium finish for Indian javelin and another indication that Yashvir is increasingly capable of performing on major international stages.

Now, with Chopra unavailable because of injury, the spotlight shifts entirely towards Yashvir. The Athletics Federation of India has selected him as the injury replacement for the Asian Games. The decision is significant because it gives him an opportunity to compete at the continental level in a field where India will be defending its strong reputation in men's javelin.

The final Indian athletics squad for Aichi-Nagoya consists of 77 athletes 34 men and 43 women.

Alongside Yashvir's inclusion, six athletes were added to the original squad: 200m runner Harita Bhadra, quarter-miler Kiran Pahal, pole vaulter Sindhushree G, triple jumper I Asha Ilango, discus thrower Sanya Yadav and hammer thrower Praveen Kumar. Long-distance runner Abhishek Pal has been removed from the team after being served notice by the National Anti-Doping Agency over the presence of a prohibited substance in his sample. Men's 110m hurdler Tejas Shirse was also omitted after suffering stress fractures in his left foot.

Meanwhile, the AFI is hoping to field Avinash Sable in both the 3000m steeplechase and 5000m. Sable's steeplechase participation is confirmed, while his 5000m entry depends on achieving the federation's qualification mark at the Indian Athletics Series Finals in New Delhi on September 10.

India's athletics team will travel to Japan on September 12 and undertake an acclimatisation camp at the University of Tsukuba before moving to the designated Asian Games accommodation.

The pressure of replacing Neeraj Chopra is enormous, but Yashvir does not need to become Chopra overnight. His own career has already demonstrated a steady upward trajectory from a bamboo javelin in Haryana to national junior titles, an 82m-plus personal best, a World Championships appearance and now a Commonwealth Games medal. The Asian Games will provide him with another opportunity to prove that he belongs among India's leading javelin throwers.

The AFI is targeting 25-30 athletics medals at the Games after Indian track and field athletes won 29 medals at the previous edition.

For Yashvir, the equation is simpler. Neeraj Chopra may be absent, but India's javelin hopes remain alive. And the man stepping into the spotlight is someone who has spent years learning, competing and growing in the shadow of the country's greatest javelin thrower.

Now, Yashvir Singh gets his own stage.