Neeraj Chopra dedicated his Olympic gold on Saturday to legendary sprinter Milkha Singh, who died of Covid in June of this year. “Milkha Singh desired to hear the national anthem performed in a stadium.” Chopra dedicated his gold to the legendary sprinter who finished fourth in the 1960 Rome Olympics.
“He is no longer with us, but his dream has been realized,” Chopra said. Milkha Singh’s son, ace golfer Jeev Milkha Singh, reacted by saying that his family would be eternally grateful for Chopra’s generosity. “Not only did you earn us our first-ever gold medal in athletics at the #OlympicGames, but you also dedicated it to my father.” “This honor means the world to the Milkha family,” he remarked on Twitter.
He won the country’s first track-and-field medal with a throw of 87.58 metres in the finals. He became the second Indian to win an individual gold medal at the Olympics with this achievement. Chopra stated after winning gold: “This year, the most important thing for me was to compete in international tournaments… The 2 to 3 international events in which I competed were extremely beneficial to me. As a result, I felt no pressure during the Olympics and was able to concentrate on my performance”.
Milkha Singh, often known as the ‘Flying Sikh,’ has expressed his desire to see an Indian win an Olympic medal in track and field. PT Usha came close to winning a medal in the women’s 400m hurdles at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, but finished fourth, just like Milkha.