Neeraj Chopra, Tharanga Pathirage and Arshad Nadeem

Two-time Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra, along with Rohit Yadav and Yashvir Singh, qualified for the men’s javelin throw final after finishing among the top 12 in the qualification round at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow on Thursday.Chopra, who won the Commonwealth Games title in 2018, finished fifth with a best throw of 79.61m. Rohit Yadav was ninth with 78.37m, while Yashvir Singh took 10th place with 78.36m, ensuring all three Indian athletes progressed to the medal round.The 28-year-old Chopra, who threw last in every round, skipped his third and final attempt after securing a place in the final.The conditions were challenging, with a steady headwind and a temperature of 18 degrees Celsius. No athlete managed to cross the automatic qualification mark of 84m, so the top 12 competitors advanced to the final, which will be held on Thursday.Only four athletes crossed the 80m mark during qualification.

Arshad Nadeem and Tharanga Pathirage qualify for final

Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage, winner of the Doha and Rome Diamond League meetings this season, topped the qualification with a first-round throw of 82.84m. Anderson Peters of Grenada, the silver medallist from the previous Commonwealth Games, finished second with 81.29m.Paris Olympics gold medallist and defending Commonwealth Games champion Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan qualified for the final after finishing seventh with a best throw of 78.63m.Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage of Sri Lanka led the qualification round with 82.84m, the longest throw of the day.Reigning world champion Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago also reached the final after finishing 11th with 78.26m.Kenya’s Julius Yego, who won gold in 2014 and bronze at the 2022 Birmingham Games, missed out on qualification after finishing 13th with 74.50m.Wearing a beanie in the Glasgow weather, Chopra received the biggest applause from the crowd at Scotstoun Stadium. He opened with 76.28m, placing sixth after the first round. His second throw of 79.61m moved him up to fifth before he chose not to take his final attempt.Chopra returned to competition this season after recovering from a lower back injury that had troubled him since September last year. The injury delayed his return until the Doha Diamond League in June, where he finished fourth with a throw of 85.69m.