Book review: 'The Man Who Made History' is a feel-good biography of Olympics champion Neeraj Chopra

Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra became the first Indian to win a gold in javelin throw at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

Veteran sports journalist Norris Pritam’s book The Man Who Made History: The Neeraj Chopra Story (Bloomsbury, 2023) is an informative, feel-good biography that fans of the reigning Olympic champion in javelin throw would take an instant liking to. The non-technical language would also appeal to readers who do not understand or follow the sport but are proud of the athlete for the glory he earned for India at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

This book benefits greatly from the author’s professional experience spanning four decades. Though he missed being at Tokyo, where Chopra became the first Indian ever to win an individual gold medal in athletics, Pritam has covered six Olympic Games, from Atlanta in 1996 to Rio De Janeiro in 2016, as well as six Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and World Championships. The expertise translates into writing that exudes authority and ease.

Pritam’s passion for the subject also comes from his own “affair with athletics” that began in the late 1960s and “matured into a full-blown romance” over forty years. He reveals, “During the National Open Championship in Calicut in 1973-74, I ran the 3,000-metre steeplechase. Competing with other state-level champions, and the Indian national champion and 1974 Asian Games silver medallist Gurmej Singh, I ended up in sixth place.” Later, Pritam got a job as a supervisor at Telco. He was expected to perform on the track, and not in the office.

The release of the book is well-timed as Chopra prepares to train at Potchefstroom in South Africa from early December to the last week of February before he travels to Europe to participate at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, where he will have to defend his title.

Chopra’s fans can look forward to a cute photograph of Chopra playing with his puppy Tokyo gifted by rifle shooter Abhinav Bindra who won the gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and a heartwarming foreword written by boxer Mary Kom, who won the bronze medal at the 2012 London Olympics. She is all praises for Chopra’s strength of character.

Readers who are unfamiliar with details about Chopra’s life will find that Pritam does a good job of consolidating much that is already known – the fact that Chopra comes from an agrarian family, that he discovered javelin when he was trying to lose weight, that he had to leave his village Khandra as a young boy to access training infrastructure and opportunities, that he is a devotee of Lord Hanuman, that he owes financial stability to a job with the Indian army before brand endorsements came in, and that he remains humble despite his fame.

Sadly, the claim that Pritam tells Chopra’s story “for the first time, from the accounts of his family and friends” is misleading. Panipat-based policy professional Arjun Singh Kadian’s book Neeraj Chopra: From Panipat to the Podium (Rupa, 2022) is based on extensive interviews with Chopra’s family members, friends, mentors, colleagues as well as coaches.

While Kadian locates Chopra’s journey in the broader context of what Haryanvis have accomplished in various sports, and attempts to challenge stereotypes about the state, Pritam approaches Chopra’s story from other angles. The Man Who Made History digs into the context and circumstances behind Chopra’s historic win, and leaves us wiser with insights on why Indian athletes prior to him were unable to scale similar heights despite their brilliance.

Apart from corporate sponsorships, international exposure, the availability of good support staff, and the increase in media coverage, Pritam underlines another important factor.

Pritam writes, “There was a big digital divide between him and other Indian stars who excelled in Olympic track and field before him. Barring Anju Bobby George, they all competed before the Internet era.” Apart from training with coaches like Jaiveer Choudhary, Naseem Ahmad, Uwe Horn, Klaus Bartonietz, Gary Calvert, Werner Daniels and Kashinath Naik, Chopra has been able to improve his skills by watching YouTube videos of people that he looks up to. Pritam points out that Chopra knows his rivals, their technique, and their weak points quite well. Chopra has met many of them, and knows their potential. This familiarity gives him a winning edge. Many of his predecessors went in with a fear of the unknown.

The book gives readers a glimpse of the unglamorous work that goes into making a star, the injuries that are occupational hazards, the physical and emotional resilience needed to bounce back, and the experts who toil behind the scenes to make sure that Chopra can perform well.

Pritam notes, “Contributing significantly to his success is Manisha Malhotra, sports excellence and scouting head at JSW. A former professional tennis player and a silver medallist in mixed doubles at the 1986 Busan Asian Games, Manisha has been a guiding force, akin to an elder sister for Neeraj.” The book includes excerpts from conversations with Chopra’s doctor Dr. Dinshaw Pardivala, the arthroscopy surgeon who has also treated sportspersons like Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu, Yogeshwar Dutt, and Akhil Kumar.

While the overall tone of the book is celebratory, it also shows that corporate money pumped into backing one star, or a few, does not necessarily lead to systemic reform in training facilities available to all athletes in the ecosystem. Many rural sportspersons miss out on the opportunity to shine. While Chopra quietly supports youth who reach out for support, this is not a substitute for what the government must do to spot, encourage, and nurture talent.

There is a glaring omission in the book that is worth noting. Pritam applauds Chopra for his solidarity with the wrestlers protesting at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi but does not mention that the protests were related to sexual harassment and intimidation allegations by women wrestlers against Brij Bhushan Singh, the president of the Wrestling Federation of India.

One hopes that this gap will be duly rectified in future editions of the book.