Neeraj Chopra thrilled to wear two hats as athlete and organiser for NC Classic 2025

The competition is being co-organised by Neeraj himself, along with JSW Sports - the firm that manages him - the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) and World Athletics.

Neeraj has also taken part in high-level meetings with AFI and World Athletics officials and has been regularly coordinating with multiple departments within JSW Sports to make the NC Classic a success.

“I’m spending time with every department at JSW Sports, understanding things, giving my inputs and suggestions and it’s been a fantastic experience,” the Indian javelin throw ace noted.

Originally slated for May 24 at Panchkula’s Tau Devi Lal Stadium, the NC Classic was shifted to the Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru due to issues with the floodlight at the earlier venue.

The event hit another roadblock as it had to be postponed due to India-Pakistan political tensions and was later rescheduled to July 5.

Neeraj has been heavily invested throughout and has played an active role in navigating through the challenges. In fact, he had reached out to the Karnataka Chief Minister personally to help facilitate the shift from Panchkula to Bengaluru.

As part of his many roles, Neeraj has approved personalised welcome letters and banners for each of his 11 competitors at the NC Classic, including seven international athletes.

He’s also involved in finalising the entertainment line-up, vetting the stadium video content and supervising the athlete fan zone. On Wednesday, he also personally inspected the gym at the Kanteerava Stadium.

Taking time out from promotional shoots to training sessions, Neeraj has also made time to go over the dinner menu for athletes and officials.

In the lead-up to the competition, Neeraj has been heavily involved in promotional activities for the NC Classic

Former tennis player and Olympian Manisha Malhotra, who works closely with Neeraj at JSW Sports, revealed exactly how hands-on Neeraj has been in making sure that the NC Classic ends up as a success.

“Every day he’s going to the stadium and is monitoring stuff. He’s also saying that he’s never been to a city so many days before the event. Usually, he flies in, does a press conference, competes and flies out. He’s having to do some running in Bengaluru other than just training,” she revealed.

“It’s his event so he can’t say it is my training time, so don’t ask me anything. Everybody is surprised to see his new avatar.”

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