PM Narendra Modi leads way as India rejoices in Neeraj Chopra's historic silver

New Delhi: From Prime Minister Narendra Modi to India's first individual Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra, the country on Sunday rejoiced Neeraj Chopra's landmark silver medal at the World Athletics Championships, calling it a "special moment".

The 24-year-old Chopra, who had entered the showpiece as a hot medal favourite in javelin throw, produced a best throw of 88.13m to finish second behind defending champion Anderson Peters of Grenada (90.54m) and become only the second Indian and first male track and field athlete to win a medal at the World Championships.

"A great accomplishment by one of our most distinguished athletes! Congratulations to @Neeraj_chopra1 on winning a historic Silver medal at the #WorldChampionships. This is a special moment for Indian sports. Best wishes to Neeraj for his upcoming endeavours," Modi tweeted.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah congratulated the Olympic champion saying he has once again made every Indian proud with his feat. "Many congratulations to you on this historic achievement and best wishes for the future," he said in a tweet in Hindi. Hailing the reigning Olympic champion's achievement, Bindra wrote on his Twitter handle, "Many congratulations @Neeraj_chopra1 for your silver at the worlds! You make us proud. Well done and the best for the rest of the season."

Legendary long jumper Anju Bobby George was the first Indian to win a medal — bronze — in the World Championships in the 2003 edition in Paris. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh too joined the country in praising Chopra and said India is elated by his "stupendous performance".

Sports Minister Anurag Thakur was also delighted at Chopra continuing his medal-winning streak at the global arena.