Meet Neeraj Chopra’s parents: The strength behind an Olympic champion

Success can seldom be achieved single-handedly. Even for world-class athletes, multiple facilitators, from family to coaches to dieticians, contribute to their on-field triumphs from behind the scenes.

It’s no different for Indian javelin throw ace Neeraj Chopra and perhaps, the two most important people behind the Olympic champion’s illustrious career have been his parents - father Satish Kumar and mother Saroj Devi.

In fact, the first thing Neeraj Chopra did after landing in India after winning his gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics was meet his parents in the lounge of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport.

During the emotional exchange, Chopra took off his medal and put it around his mother’s neck first and then his father’s - a tribute to their sacrifices and effort over the years.

Neeraj Chopra’s parents

Neeraj Chopra was born on December 24, 1997, in the Khandra village of Haryana’s Panipat district. His father Satish Kumar is a farmer of modest means while his mother Saroj Devi is a homemaker.

The Indian javelin thrower is also the eldest among three siblings. He has two younger sisters, Sangeeta and Sarita.

Neeraj Chopra was overweight as a kid. He was around 90kgs at 11. To keep him active, Satish Kumar enrolled him in a gym in the nearby town of Madlauda. However, being the youngest at the gym, Neeraj Chopra often had to settle for equipment others didn’t want and didn’t quite enjoy the routine.

His parents were supportive when he told them about it and a hunt for an alternative physical activity began. It was during this time, that a visit to Panipat's Shivaji Stadium with his father changed Neeraj Chopra’s life.

Chopra, who wasn’t too fond of running due to his weight, saw some heavy men throwing javelins there and wanted to pursue the sport. And thus, the journey began.

As Neeraj Chopra got serious about pursuing the sport full-time, Satish Kumar knew that there would be financial challenges. But Satish ensured he left no stone unturned to meet Chopra's training and dietary requirements.

“We come from a farmer's background. A farmer never has enough to live on his own accord. I believe that families, who have lived with lack of amenities, realise the importance of basic amenities and have the courage to live their dreams and achieve something in life,” Satish Kumar told ANI.

Neeraj Chopra’s family

Something that helped Neeraj Chopra immensely during his formative years was living in a joint family setup with 19 members, which included his three uncles, Surinder, Bhim and Sultan.

The entire Chopra household unified behind the lad's dreams and helped him drive them home. “All of us in our family made sure that Neeraj gets proper guidance for becoming a proper javelin thrower. We all supported him in fulfilling his dream. Our entire village prayed for his success,” Satish Kumar says.

Nevertheless, it was a huge relief for the Chopra family once Neeraj got a job with the Indian Army in 2017. A stable income meant a lot.

“We are farmers, nobody in the family has a government job and my family has been supporting me with difficulty,” Chopra told PTI after he was made a Junior Commission Officer in the Indian Army. “But it is a sort of relief now that I am able to support my family financially besides continuing with my training.”

Having achieved his own goals with his parents’ and family’s unrelenting support, Neeraj Chopra is also doing his part to make his parents’ dreams come true.

The Indian ace took his parents on their first-ever flight as he flew them to Bellary in Karnataka from Delhi in a private jet and returned home the same day shortly after his Tokyo heroics.