Neeraj Chopra, the Olympic javelin champion, announced his withdrawal from the Fanny Blankers-Koen Games in Hengelo, the Netherlands via Twitter on Monday.

The 25-year old was supposed to feature in the event to be held on June 4, but cited a muscle strain as the reason for his withdrawal. In a tweet through his official account, he mentioned wanting to avoid unnecessary risks to “aggravate the injury” and after a medical evaluation, has decided to not feature at the event.

Chopra stated that he “will aim to be back on the track in June” and his next scheduled event is at the Paavo Nurmi Games in Finland on June 13 where he will face off with rival Johannes Vetter of Germany. It remains to be seen if he will be fit enough to appear for that event as well. The 25-year old started his 2022 season at the same event where he won a silver medal with a throw of 89.40m.

Chopra’s 2023 season started emphatically when he won the Doha Diamond League leg on May 5 with a World Lead mark of 88.67m. The next Diamond League leg for javelin is set to be held on June 30 in Lausanne, Switzerland.