Indian javelin star Neeraj Chopra marked his return to competition after a lengthy injury layoff with a fourth-place finish at the Doha Diamond League on Friday, while comfortably securing qualification for the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
The 28-year-old Olympic champion registered a best throw of 85.69m in his third attempt in his season-opening event, ending fourth in a high-quality field led by Sri Lanka's in-form Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage.
Chopra's return came after being sidelined by a back injury sustained ahead of the World Championships in Tokyo in September 2025. Competing for the first time since finishing eighth at the global showpiece, he had undergone rehabilitation in Turkey before resuming training in Switzerland from May 25.
Pathirage clinched the title with a throw of 88.68m, while Grenada's two-time world champion Andersen Peters finished second with 86.38m. American Curtis Thompson took third place with 85.99m.
Despite missing out on a podium finish, Chopra crossed the Athletics Federation of India's Commonwealth Games qualification mark of 82.61m with his second-round effort of 82.77m. The throw confirmed his place in the Indian squad for the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, scheduled from July 23 to August 2.
Chopra opened with a foul before producing the qualifying throw in the second round. He improved further with an 85.69m effort in the third round to move into third place.
However, Pathirage transformed the contest in the fourth round with a winning throw of 88.68m, pushing Chopra down to fourth position. The 23-year-old Sri Lankan had been lying fourth midway through the competition after throws of 82.62m, 84.63m and 80.53m.
The victory continued Pathirage's remarkable season. Earlier this month, he won the Rome Diamond League with a massive throw of 92.62m, the current world-leading mark. He became only the fourth Asian athlete and the 28th overall to breach the 90m barrier.
Pathirage arrived in Doha after winning the prestigious Golden Spike meet in Ostrava, Czechia, with a throw of 86.57m, making it back-to-back Diamond League victories for the rising star.
"2026 has been a very good season so far, but I wasn't able to get a massive throw today. However, I will keep trying my best and I'm glad I had a win today. I'm happy in this Doha Diamond League, it was one of my dreams to compete here as the first ever Sri Lankan in the Wanda Diamond League circuit," Pathirage said.
For Chopra, the result marked the first time in four years that he failed to finish among the top two in a Diamond League event. Since finishing second in Stockholm in June 2022 with a throw of 89.94m, he had secured either first or second place in every Diamond League appearance.
His first Diamond League title came in Lausanne in August 2022. In Doha, he won the event in 2023 before finishing runner-up in both 2024 and 2025.
The Indian star was unable to replicate his memorable performance in Doha last year when he breached the 90m mark for the first time with a throw of 90.23m, though he finished second on that occasion.
Friday's event was only the third meeting between Chopra and Pathirage and their first on the Diamond League circuit. The head-to-head record now stands 2-1 in favour of the Sri Lankan.
Chopra had defeated Pathirage at the NC Classic in Bengaluru in July 2025, where the Sri Lankan finished third with 84.34m. At the World Championships in Tokyo later that year, Pathirage placed seventh with 84.38m, one spot ahead of Chopra, who endured a disappointing eighth-place finish.