Neeraj Chopra provisionally selected for India’s 32-member athletics squad for the Commonwealth Games 2026 in Glasgow; must meet 82.61m to qualify.
India’s Commonwealth Games 2026 athletics team: Neeraj Chopra provisionally selected - full squad
India’s Commonwealth Games 2026 athletics team: Neeraj Chopra provisionally selected - full squad
Gurindervir Singh, Animesh Kujur, Murali Sreeshankar, Parul Chaudhary, Tajunerpal Singh Toor and Gulveer Singh are also in the 32-member squad for Glasgow.
Indian javelin throw ace Neeraj Chopra has been provisionally included in India’s 32-member athletics squad for the Commonwealth Games 2026 , scheduled to be held in Glasgow, Scotland, from July 23 to August 2.
Though Neeraj, a two-time Olympic medallist, is yet to start his 2026 athletics season as he was recovering from a back injury, the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) provisionally included him in the 32-member squad for Glasgow 2026.
However, the 28-year-old Indian athlete still needs to achieve the CWG qualification standard of 82.61m in the coming days in order to secure his place in the final team.
“Neeraj Chopra has recovered and is ready to compete in the next few days. He asked us to add him. We expect him to play a few meets this month,” AFI Selection Committee chairman Adille Sumariwalla said. “His recovery is going fine and he will be competition ready in the next ten days but he will have to qualify.”
Neeraj Chopra, a Commonwealth Games champion from 2018, was last seen in action at the World Championships last year. He skipped Birmingham 2022 with a groin injury.
A similar leeway has also been granted for triple jumper Selva Prabhu, who recently won the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championship with a 16.92m jump.
The 22-year-old Selva will need to perform at the Inter-States scheduled later this month to confirm his spot in the Glasgow-bound team. AFI’s CWG 2026 qualifying mark is 16.89m.
AFI have named 22 men and 10 women in India’s Commonwealth Games 2026 athletics squad .
Most of the athletes earned their spots by breaching the qualifying marks at the Federation Cup and the Indian Athletics Series in Ludhiana - two meets designated as CWG selection trials by the AFI.
However, there were a few exceptions granted to athletes who had sought prior permission, allowing them to breach the entry standards in competitions abroad.
The likes of Parul Chaudhary, who broke the 5000m national record in France on Saturday, long distance runner Gulveer Singh, shot putter Manpreet, race walker Priyanka Goswami and long jumper Lokesh Sathyanathan were among the ones exempted.
Sprinters Gurindervir Singh, Animesh Kujur, long jumper Murali Sreeshankar, former Asian champion shot putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor and pole vault national record co-holders Dev Meena and Kuldeep Kumar are also in the shortlist.
Vishal TK, the first Indian man to clock a sub-45-second 400m, has been included in the mixed 4x400m relay pool alongside Rajesh Ramesh, Ansa Babu, Neeru Pathak and Rashdeep Kaur.
India’s Commonwealth Games 2026 athletics squad
Santhosh Kumar Tamilarasan (400m hurdles)
Samardeep Singh Gill (shot put)
Tajinderpal Singh Toor (shot put)
Yash Vir Singh (javelin throw)
Priyanka Goswami (10000m race walk)
*Subject to achieving qualifying mark before Commonwealth Games.
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