Neeraj Chopra Looks Better Than Ever, Is a Golden Comeback Loading?

India's athletics contingent heads into the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow with renewed confidence as chief coach Radhakrishnan Nair believes the team is capable of delivering its best-ever performance, led by a fully fit Neeraj Chopra.

The biggest boost for India comes from the return of the Olympic and world champion javelin thrower, who missed the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games due to injury. According to Nair, Chopra has recovered completely and is looking sharper than he has in years.

"I have not seen him in such good physical condition for a long time. He is extremely confident and we can expect a very strong performance," Nair said, expressing optimism without predicting the medal's colour.

Chopra, who won Commonwealth Games gold in 2018, enters the competition after recovering from a lower back injury that disrupted his season. He has competed only once this year, finishing fourth at the Doha Diamond League with a throw of 85.69m. However, the coaching staff believes he is now back to full fitness.

The road to gold will not be easy. Chopra is expected to face stiff competition from Pakistan's Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem, Grenada's Anderson Peters, and Sri Lanka's Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage. India also has another strong medal prospect in Rohit Yadav, who crossed 87 metres last month.

Beyond the javelin, India is optimistic across several disciplines. Nair highlighted strong medal hopes in the long jump, triple jump, high jump, decathlon, and distance events featuring Gulveer Singh and Parul Chaudhary.

India won eight athletics medals, including one gold, at the Birmingham Games in 2022. This time, the team believes it can surpass that tally and even secure two or three gold medals, which would mark the country's finest athletics performance in Commonwealth Games history.

The men's javelin qualification is scheduled for July 30, with the medal event taking place the following day.