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Three-time Indian Premier League champions Chennai Super Kings on Sunday honoured Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra by presenting him Rs one crore in recognition of his historic feat at the Tokyo Games.
A cheque of Rs one crore on behalf of Chennai Super Kings Cricket Limited was presented to the Olympic champion javelin thrower.
CSK also presented a special jersey with the number 8758 (highlighting his gold medal-winning effort of 87.58m) as a mark of respect to Chopra, who joined Abhinav Bindra as only the second Indian individual gold medallist in the Olympics.
"The entire nation is proud of Neeraj for his stupendous achievement. By becoming the first Indian to win a medal (gold) in track and field, he has set a benchmark," CSK CEO K S Viswanathan said.
"He is an inspiration for the next generation. 87.58 is a number that will forever be etched in Indian sporting history and it's an honour for us to present this special jersey to Neeraj. We wish he brings more glory to the nation."
After receiving the award and special jersey, the 23-year old Chopra said that the past two months have been an opportunity for him to experience new things and also thanked the CSK management for the support.
"Thank you so much for your support and for the prize. It feels good. I never thought that I'll get so much love after winning gold. It was completely unexpected and it feels good. Hopefully I'll work hard and get good results," he said.
With a throw of 87.58m On August 7 in Tokyo, Chopra became the first Indian to win a gold medal in athletics at the Olympic games.