Neeraj Chopra qualifies for the Diamond League finals despite only participating in two events; here is the procedure

Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra qualified for the Diamond League finals in Brussels on September 5, despite competing in only two Diamond League meets this season.The final standings were updated after Thursday’s final Diamond League meeting in Zurich. Chopra finished sixth in the standings with 12 points after securing second place in Doha on 19 June and Lausanne on 21 August.The top six athletes in the men’s javelin rankings qualify for the Diamond League finals.There were 14 Diamond League meetings this season, but the men’s javelin was part of only five of them. Chopra competed in just two as he was recovering from a lower back injury that has plagued him since September last year.The injury delayed his return until the Diamond League meeting in Doha.Chopra was not fully fit at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, where he won the silver medal with a season’s best throw of 85.83 metres. He later improved this mark to 88.05 meters in the Lausanne Diamond League.The finals of the Diamond League will take place over two days in Brussels on September 4 and 5. The men’s javelin final is scheduled for September 5.The winner of each event will receive the cup and a minimum of $30,000 in prize money, while the eighth-place finisher will receive $1,000. If the men’s javelin is selected as one of the Diamond+ events, the prize for the winner will increase to $60,000.

Rumesh Pathirage goes into the final as favourite

Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Pathirage finished top of the standings with 39 points after participating in all five Diamond League javelin events.The 23-year-old won four races and finished second in one. He also produced a best throw of 92.07m in Zurich on Thursday, his second throw over 90m this season after a 92.62m effort in Rome.Anderson Peters of Grenada finished second in the standings with 35 points. In Zurich, he finished second with a throw of 86.93 meters.Trinidad and Tobago’s Keshorn Walcott finished third with 23 points, followed by American Curtis Thompson with 20 points and Kenyan Julius Yego with 13 points.Germany’s Julian Weber, the only other athlete to clear 90 meters this season with a throw of 90.40 meters at the European Championships in Birmingham, has not taken part in any Diamond League meet due to injury and will miss the final in Brussels.