Neeraj Chopra was conferred with the honorary title of Lieutenant Colonel in the Territorial Army. (ANI)

Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra was honoured at his pipping ceremony on Wednesday, marking his new role as Lieutenant Colonel (Honorary) in the Indian Army. The appointment, as documented in The Gazette of India, took effect on April 16.Neeraj Chopra began his military career as a Naib Subedar in the Indian Army on August 26, 2016. His exceptional athletic achievements led to his promotion to Subedar in 2021.The decorated athlete’s journey includes receiving the Arjuna Award in 2018 for his athletics accomplishments, followed by the prestigious Khel Ratna award in 2021 for his outstanding contributions to sports.

Following his historic gold medal victory at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Chopra was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2022, the highest peacetime honour bestowed by the Indian Army.The 27-year-old javelin thrower’s accolades continued with his promotion to Subedar Major in 2022. That same year, he was also awarded the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian honour.In recent competitions, Chopra’s performance at the World Athletics Championships saw him finish eighth with a best throw of 84.03 m, ending his impressive streak of 26 events with top-two finishes.His fellow Indian athlete Sachin Yadav showed remarkable form at the championships, securing fourth place with a throw of 86.27 m, though falling short of a medal position.