Sachin Yadav Gets Rome Diamond League Debut as Neeraj Stays in Recovery
Neeraj Chopra’s 2026 season has not started. It still isn’t starting.
The two-time Olympic medallist is in Turkey, rehabbing a back injury that has kept him out since the World Championships in Tokyo last September, where he finished eighth. Rome on June 4 won’t see him. No return date is set.
Into his place steps Sachin Yadav — 21 years old, Diamond League debut. He arrives off a fourth-place finish at the Tokyo Worlds with a personal best of 86.27m. Competing against some of the biggest names in the sport and finishing fourth in a World Championship final is not a bad calling card for a first Diamond League start.
India still needs Neeraj. But Yadav is proving the next generation of the javelin doesn’t wait.