Before Neeraj Chopra scripted history by bringing India her first gold medal in a track and field event, he was on a social media break and battling the heat of Tokyo.
That is when words of his coach and German biomechanics expert Klaus Bartonietz helped him up his game: "The body is a bow, the javelin is an arrow."
In 2018, Neeraj started training with Bartonietz, who is one of the main authorities on the javelin throw sport. "Maybe he was the fastest today, he was very fast. He would create the energy and then you have to block. The German (Johannes Vetter, the only one to throw over 90 m this season) was fitter and a great blocker. But you need body elasticity to transfer into the javelin, not just body power. Dhanush!" he is quoted as saying in a report.
Neeraj and the coach spent most of the Covid-19 lockdown with each other, including some months at the National Institute of Sports in Patiala followed by a trip to Europe for a short competition before Tokyo Games.
Bartonietz calls Neeraj a very "humble athlete", someone who does not make a big noise about himself. "Already a CWG champion, junior world record holder, but very humble. Others make a big noise about themselves but mentally, Neeraj is very strong," he said.
Hailing his body capacity, flexibility and gymnastic work, the coach said Neeraj is an overall athlete.
Not a '70-minute dramatic speech', but Bartonietz only told Neeraj to "enjoy" at the Games in broken Hindi: "Maza karo." And enjoy, he did.