Paris Olympics bronze medallist Anderson Peters of Grenada has been ruled out of the upcoming Neeraj Chopra Classic, a World Athletics category A javelin event, due to an ankle injury, organisers said on Tuesday.
The two-time world champion has been replaced by Poland’s Cyprian Mrzyglod, ranked 16 in the world, for the final lineup of the one-day competition, classified as a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meet, slated to take place at the Sri Kanteerva Stadium in Bengaluru.
“Anderson Peters has been ruled out of the Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025 due to an ankle injury sustained during his last competition. Poland’s Cyprian Mrzygłód has been named as his replacement in the final lineup,” the organisers said in a statement.
Peters, known for his explosive throws beyond 90m, a personal best of 93.07m, has two world titles to his name, which he won in 2019 and 2022. He is also a reigning Pan American Games gold medallist. The 27-year-old thrower is the biggest name to miss out on the competition.
Peters is the second athlete after Hangzhou Asian Games silver medalist Kishore Jena to be ruled out of the Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025 due to injury. Jena has been replaced by his compatriot Yash Vir Singh in the final entry list.
Olympic and world champion Neeraj Chopra will headline the competition named in his honour. The Neeraj Chopra Classic is being co-organised by Neeraj himself in collaboration with JSW Sports, the Athletics Federation of India and World Athletics.
The competition features 2016 Olympics gold medallist Thomas Rohler are among the top stars participating in a one-day javelin throw meet in Bengaluru. The NC Classic 2025 will serve as a crucial qualification event for the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo from September 13 to 21, though Neeraj, the reigning world champion, has already secured his spot.