(Athletics news) Ever since Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra won an Olympic gold in Tokyo, his life completely changed. Chopra has become an overnight star and has garnered more than a million followers on Instagram, increasing his social media valuation to Rs. 438 crore. If that wasn’t enough, according to a research conducted by YouGov SPORT, Neeraj Chopra also became the most mentioned athlete globally on the social media platform, recording over 2.9 million mentions from over 1.4 million authors.

None of this would have been possible if it wasn’t for his tremendous achievement at the Tokyo Olympics. The credit also goes to his coach, Uwe Hohn who guided Neeraj Chopra to a historic Olympic gold. As the popular saying by Cathy Engelbert goes, “Behind every great athlete is a masterful coach that inspires the athlete to evolve into the strongest performer they can become.” It’s fair to say that it was a shock when the Athletics Federation of India ended their association with national chief javelin coach Uwe Hohn, citing it is “not happy” with his performance, despite helping Neeraj Chopra win a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics just a few months earlier.

In a press conference, AFI president Adille Sumariwalla said “We are bringing two more coaches and we are changing Uwe Hohn as we are not happy with his performance. We are looking for a foreign coach for (Tajinderpal Singh) Toor.” The press conference was attended by AFI planning committee chairman Lalit K Bhanot and vice-president Anju Bobby George as well and Sumariwalla went on to elaborate that the below par performances of Shivpal Singh and Annu Rani at the Tokyo Olympics was due to Uwe Hohn poor guidance as the chief coach.

The claims by AFI seem to be cryptic and hard to believe. Hired in 2017, the German is the only man to have thrown a javelin over 100 meters in 1984, a feat that remains one of the most extraordinary accomplishments in sports. Ever since he managed Neeraj Chopra in 2018, the Indian athlete has grabbed the top spot at the Commonwealth and Asian Games.  However, Hohn’s relationship with the Athletics Federation of India has been rocky from the start. In an interview with the Indian Express, the German said “When I came here, I thought I could change something but it’s probably too difficult with these people at SAI or AFI. I don’t know if it’s a lack of knowledge or ignorance. Besides camps or competitions, even when we ask via our nutritionist for supplements for our athletes, we don’t get the right stuff. Not even for TOPS (Target Olympic Podium Scheme) athletes – medal contenders handpicked by the Sports Ministry. If we get something, we are very happy.”

Neeraj Chopra said, “The time I spent with coach Hohn, I believe, was good and I respect him. In that year (2018), I won gold at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games. I thought that his (Hohn’s) training style and technique were a bit different. Later, when I trained with Klaus, I felt his training plan suited me.” The Athletics Federation of India has come under fire in recent months after AFI president Adille Sumariwalla posted detailed information about the cost borne by the Federation for Neeraj Chopra’s Olympic journey. It’s clear that the AFI needs to handle situations better, including Uwe Hohn’s departure, especially after everything he has helped Neeraj Chopra accomplish in his career.

Also read: Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra and other Tokyo Games participants felicitated by JSW Sports