Rumesh Pathirage kept his golden run alive with the Lausanne Diamond League title as Neeraj Chopra finished second with 88.05m. This is the second time Pathirage has got better of Neeraj after the gold at the 2026 Commonwealth Games.

Returning from a long injury layoff, Neeraj showed that he still has got it with a big season best.

Neeraj started with a throw of 83.54m and finished the first round in second place after Pathirage started the event with a big throw of 85.99m.

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Pathirage improved his throw to 87.06m in the second attempt while former world champion Anderson Peters also joined with a 84.76m.

However, Neeraj registered a season best of 88.05m in his second attempt pushing everyone below him to take the lead. The 88.05m throw also made Neeraj India’s best thrower as he overtakes Rohit Yadav for the national lead.

Pathirage came back to reclaim his lead in the third attempt with another big throw of 88.14m while Neeraj and Peters could muster 83.72m and 84.71m respectively.

In the fourth attempt while Neeraj had a foul throw, Pathirage continued his consistent show with 86.71m, making it his fourth throw above 85m out of four attempts.

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While Neeraj recorded one more throw of 82.15m, Pathirage fouled his last two throws.

Talking about the finish, Neeraj said that he didn’t realise how close the match was. “I didn’t realise it was only nine centimetres, it was really close, but I’m happy with the 88-metre throw,” Neeraj said.

He also thanked the crowd present in the stadium. “To be honest, it didn´t feel like it went 88 metres because I felt very relaxed. I tried really hard and later focused on my technique. With every competition, I feel that I´m coming back. The crowds in Lausanne and Zurich understand athletics and really support you, so it’s always good to compete here,” he said.