Kishore Jena Biography: Family Background, Achievements, and More Of India’s Javelin Star Second to Neeraj Chopra
Kishore Jena: When it comes to Javelin, no one has acclaimed a name quite like Neeraj Chopra in India. Relatively unknown, Kishore Jena from Odisha is only second to Chopra in Indian athletics.
View this post on Instagram
This is a spotlight on the man who is representing India at the Paris Olympics 2024 shoulder to shoulder Neeraj Chopra.
Kishore Jena Biography
Coming from the Kothasahi village near Puri in Odisha, Kishore Jena is the seventh born to Keshab Jena, a paddy farmer, and his wife Harapriya. Sports was his route to bring a stable income into the house with a job via sports quota. For the unversed, Javelin was not even his preferred choice of game to play in. Call it destiny, but Javelin surely took him places.
View this post on Instagram
Introduction to Javelin
Initially, Jena was a Volleyball player. His skills with the ball landed him at the government's Sports Hostel in Bhubaneswar. He was introduced to javelin by a former state player, Laxman Baral. In his college years, he was under the coachship of Nilamadhab Deo.
His association with volleyball ended due to his height, but javelin was waiting for him to break the state record with a 72.77m throw in 2017.
The state record brought him into the eyes of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which got him a job in Bhopal in 2018. His coach at the CISF was Jagbir Singh who made it possible for him to overcome his emotional turmoil after his father’s accident in the same year and pushed him to exceed his 75m throw mark.
National & International Breakthrough
State Wins
In 2021, Jena made a throw of 76 meters at the Odisha State Championships with a 77-meter plus at the inter-state championship in Chennai in June 2022 earning him a place at the National camp.
With proper training, a regulated and balanced diet, and a strict training schedule, he honed his javelin skills Asian Athletics Championship bronze medallist Samarjeet Singh Malhi.
In 2022, he won a bronze medal at the National Open Athletics Championships in Bengaluru, marking his personal best throw of 78.05 meters.
In 2023, he took home gold at the Indian Open Throws Competition in Bellary with a throw of 78.93 meters and the Indian Grand Prix in Thiruvananthapuram, with 81.05 meters.
Global Wins
Clinching a silver at nationals in Bhubaneswar and triumphed at Sri Lanka nationals with an 84.38 meter.
Jena finished in fifth place in World Athletics Championships 2023, with a personal best of 84.77 meters.
At the Asian Games, Hangzhou 2023, he won a silver medal becoming the second Indian men’s javelin thrower, only after Neeraj Chopra.
View this post on Instagram
With his triumphant trajectory, Jena is a strong contender at the Paris Olympics 2024, second only to Neeraj Chopra.
