Ever since Neeraj Chopra won the historic gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, he has become the golden boy of India - being invited for felicitation ceremonies almost every day and interviewed by media houses even more often.
However, one such interview of his where Neeraj had said he had to take his javelin from Pakistani thrower before his first throw at the Tokyo Olympics, has since been used by certain individuals on social media to target the Pakistani athlete.
In an interview to the Times of India, Neeraj has been quoted as having said, "The story is that I was searching for my javelin at the start of the final. I was not able to find it. Suddenly, I saw Arshad Nadeem was moving around with my javelin. Then I told him, 'Bhai give this javelin to me, it is my javelin. I have to throw with it'. Then he gave it back. That's why you must have seen I took my first throw hurriedly!"
This statement has since been misinterpreted by the people on social media with many even starting to target Arshad.
In light of the developments, Neeraj took to Twitter to post a video requesting people to not use him and his comments as a medium of propaganda. He said, "I would request everyone to please not use me and my comments as a medium to further your vested interests and propaganda. Sports teaches us to be together and united. I'm extremely disappointed to see some of the reactions from the public on my recent comments."
In the video, the 23-year-old explained that any thrower can use anyone's javelin and that there is no specific rule for it. He also expressed his disappointment over a simple matter being blown out of proportion.
"I want to clarify about my recent comments in an interview where I mentioned that Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem was using my javelin. It has been turned into a big controversy when it is a very simple matter," said Chopra in the video.
"We keep the personal javelin there (in the rack) but anyone can use the javelins in the rack, that is the rule. So there is nothing wrong with what Nadeem was doing there. He was preparing for his throw with my javelin and then I asked for it from him for my throw. It is no big deal," he added.
"I'm saddened by the fact that people are using it to cause controversy using my name. I request everyone to not indulge in this. Sports teaches us to be together. All the javelin throwers share a great bond so I request everyone to not say anything that would hurt my sentiments," concluded Chopra.
Chopra won the gold medal in men's javelin throw with an effort of 87.58 metres at the Tokyo Olympics.
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