Brands on rewards spree | IndiGo, BCCI, Haryana govt make beeline for Olympian Neeraj Chopra

Star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra on August 7 became only the second Indian to win an individual gold in the Olympics, outperforming the field by quite a distance to notch up the first track-and-field Games medal for the country.

To celebrate the win, Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on August 7 announced that he will be given ₹6 crore and a class I category job.

"We will be building a Centre of Excellence for athletes in Panchkula, where he will be the head if he wants. He will be given a plot with 50% concession, like other players," he also added.

Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh also recognised the stupendous achievement of Chopra and announced a special cash reward of Rs 2 crore in an official statement.

Moreover, Manipur Cabinet also decided to honour Chopra by extending a reward of ₹1 crore, tweeted CM N Biren Singh.

Not just the state governmnets, but commercial brands across India are offering rewards to the gold medalist.

Take a look at few:

IndiGo Airlines

IndiGo airlines announced that it will offer unlimited free travel to ‘Gold Medallist’ Neeraj Chopra for a period of one year. Ronojoy Dutta, Whole-time Director & Chief Executive Officer, IndiGo said, “Neeraj we were all overjoyed to hear about your remarkable achievement. You have made the country proud, and I know all IndiGo employees would be truly honored to welcome you onboard one of our flights. With all humility, we would like to offer you free flights on IndiGo for a year. You have shown us what hard work, resilience and passion can achieve and I am sure you will be a torchbearer for future Indian athletes. Well done, Neeraj”.

BCCI

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Saturday announced a cash award of Rs 1 crore for Chopra.

INR 1 Cr. - medallist @Neeraj_chopra1

50 lakh each - medallists @mirabai_chanu & Ravi Kumar Dahiya

25 lakh each – medallists @Pvsindhu1, @LovlinaBorgohai, @BajrangPunia

INR 1.25 Cr. – @TheHockeyIndia men's team @SGanguly99| @ThakurArunS| @ShuklaRajiv

— Jay Shah (@JayShah) August 7, 2021

BCCI secretary Jay Shah also announced Rs 50 lakh each for silver medallists Mirabai Chanu and Ravi Kumar Dahiya and Rs 25 lakh each for bronze medalists PV Sindhu, Lovlina Borgohain and Bajrang Punia.

Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings Cricket Ltd. announced that it is awarding Rs 1 crore to Chopra. "To commemorate this special and historic feat, on behalf of the fans Chennai Super Kings Cricket Ltd., India’s much loved and celebrated sports team and Lieutenant Colonel MS Dhoni extend their wishes to Neeraj Chopra, a Junior Commissioned Officer in Indian Army. As a mark of appreciation and honour on his stellar achievement, CSK is awarding Rs. 1 Crore to Neeraj Chopra," CSk said in a statemnet.

CSK Spokesperson said “We as Indians are proud of Neeraj Chopra as his effort at Tokyo 2020 will inspire millions of Indians to take up sport and instil belief in them to be able to compete and excel at the highest level in any discipline of sport. His Gold medal winning throw of 87.58m in the Men's Javelin has galvanised the entire nation.”

Go First

Earlier known as GoAir, Go First has offered free travel to all medal-winners until 2025. The offer is applicable to all who won it for their country. India finished its Tokyo Olympics campaign with one gold, two silvers and four bronze medals.

Mahindra group Chairman Anand Mahindra

Responding to a follower on Twitter who asked him to gift Chopra the XUV700, Mahindra said, "Yes indeed. It will be my personal privilege & honour to gift our Golden Athlete an XUV 700."

Tagging M&M Ltd Executive Director Rajesh Jejurikar and M&M Ltd CEO Automotive Division Veejay Nakra, Mahindra asked them to "keep one ready for him please".

Yes indeed. It will be my personal privilege & honour to gift our Golden Athlete an XUV 7OO @rajesh664 @vijaynakra Keep one ready for him please. https://t.co/O544iM1KDf

— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) August 7, 2021

Not just that, sharing another tweet with a coin embossed with the symbol of a javelin thrower, he said, "The Javelin throw is arguably the most frequently used image for commemorative coins. We need to have one officially released depicting #NeerajChopra", tagging Prime Minister Narendra Modi and sports minister Anurag Thakur.

The Javelin throw is arguably the most frequently used image for commemorative coins. We need to have one officially released depicting #NeerajChopra @narendramodi @ianuragthakur pic.twitter.com/034m0ISTis

— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) August 7, 2021

Byjus
Edtech major BYJU'S on August 8 announced a cash reward of Rs 2 crore for star India javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra following his gold medal winning feat at the Tokyo Olympics. The startup also announced Rs 1 crore for each of the other six medallists, who brought laurels to the country at the Games.

"Making further strides into encouraging players across sports disciplines, the company has announced Rs 2 crores for Neeraj Chopra and Rs 1 crore each for Mirabai Chanu, Ravi Kumar Dahiya, Lovlina Borgohain, PV Sindhu and Bajrang Punia," a release read.