Kishore Jena, a silver medalist in the Asian Games and the owner of the second-longest throw by an Indian, has been added to the roster of Indian competitors for the first-ever Neeraj Chopra Classic (NC Classic) 2025 javelin throw tournament. The event will take place in Bengaluru on May 24.

The organizers said on social media, “Kishore Jena, an Indian elite 87-meter+ thrower and silver medallist at the Asian Games, is locked in for the #NCClassic2025.”

Jena’s notable accomplishments include being in the top five at the 2023 World Championships and winning a silver medal at the 2022 Asian Games.

Elite male and female javelin throwers from all over the globe will compete in India for the first time in this event, which will be headlined by double Olympic medalist and current world champion Neeraj Chopra.

The tournament is being organized by Chopra and JSW Sport in collaboration with the Athletics Federation of India and World Athletics, and Jena will join Rohit Yadav, Sachin Yadav, and Sahil Silwal to round out the Indian roster.

In terms of ranking points, the one-day javelin throw competition is equivalent to a Continental Tour Gold event as it is categorized as a World Athletics “A” category event. Bengaluru’s Sri Kanteerva Stadium will host it.

Among the best athletes competing are Rio Olympic silver medalist and previous world champion Julius Yego of Kenya, and Grenada’s Anderson Peters, a bronze medallist from the Paris Olympics and two-time world champion.

The main attractions in the one-day tournament named after him will be the gold medalist from the Tokyo Olympics, the silver medallist from the Paris Olympics, and the current world champion Chopra.

The roster also includes Japan’s Genki Dean, Brazil’s Luiz Mauricio da Silva, Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Pathirage, Thomas Rohler (Germany), the 2016 Olympic champion and one of the sport’s all-time greats, and USA’s Curtis Thompson, the current global leader and winner of the Pan American Games.

Although Neeraj, the current world champion, has already guaranteed his place, the NC Classic 2025 will be an important qualifying event for the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, which will take place from September 13 to 21.