Bengaluru: The Neeraj Chopra Classic international javelin throw event, which was postponed due to India-Pakistan military conflict last month, will be held on June 5 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru, the event organisers said on Tuesday. 

The inaugural edition of the tournament, originally scheduled for May 24, is being organised by double Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra in collaboration with JSW Sports and sanctioned by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI). 

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The event will feature 12 javelin throwers, including seven of the world's top athletes in the discipline and five Indian participants. Apart from Chopra, the Indian contingent includes Asian championships silver-medallist Sachin Yadav, Kishore Jena, Rohit Yadav and Sahil Silwal.

The foreign competitors for the event are two-time world champion Anderson Peters (PB: 93.07m) of Grenada, 2016 Olympics gold winner Thomas Rohler (PB: 93.90m) of Germany, 2015 world champion Julius Yego (PB: 92.72m) of Kenya, American Curtis Thompson (PB: 87.76m), Asian Games bronze medallist Genki Dean (PB: 84.28m) of Japan, Rumesh Pathirage (PB: 85.45m) of Sri Lanka, Luiz Mauricio da Silva (PB: 86.34m) of Brazil.

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"Bringing the Neeraj Chopra Classic back this quickly has taken an enormous collective effort, and we're happy to confirm its return on July 5," said JSW Sports Chief Commercial Officer Karan Yadav. "The unwavering support from the AFI, the Karnataka Olympic Association, the Government of Karnataka, and our partners made this possible. The energy around this event is bigger than ever, and we're set to deliver a celebration of javelin that's bolder, better, and even more unforgettable," he said.

The event, which was granted category A status by World Athletics, was shifted to the Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru from the original venue of Panchkula due to inadequate lighting for live telecast. A 'dream project' of Chopra, it was announced with much fanfare, but had to be postponed due to the border tensions after the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians, mostly tourists.

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