The inaugural edition of the Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025, originally scheduled to be held on May 24 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium here, has been postponed owing to safety concerns in light of the prevailing tensions between India and Pakistan, the organisers has announced.
"In light of the current situation, the inaugural edition of the NC Classic stands postponed until further notice," the organising committee said in a statement on Saturday.
The decision was taken after due deliberation and consultations with stakeholders, with the safety of athletes, officials and the wider community cited as the primary concern.The revised schedule for the event, which holds World Athletics 'A' category status, will be announced in due course.
Jointly organised by Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra, JSW Sports, the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), and World Athletics (WA), the meet was set to be the highest-tier international athletics competition ever staged in the country.
The competition was expected to feature a world-class javelin field led by Tokyo 2020 Olympic and reigning world champion Neeraj himself, who began his 2025 season with a win at the Potch Invitational in South Africa. Neeraj was slated to compete in the NC Classic following his appearance at the Doha Diamond League on May 16.
Also confirmed for the Bengaluru meet were two-time world champion Anderson Peters (Grenada), Rio 2016 gold medallist Thomas Rohler (Germany), and 2015 world champion Julius Yego (Kenya). Asian Games silver medallist Kishore Jena was also part of the field.
Chopra remains listed for participation at the Golden Spike athletics meet in Czechia next month.Earlier in the day, the BCCI had announced a one-week postponement of IPL 2025, also citing security concerns.(UNI)
