Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra’s preparation for the Asian Games is on track as he clinched a gold medal at the Sotteville Athletics Meet in France on Tuesday.

The Indian youngster secured the top spot in the podium with an 85.17m throw. Moldova’s Andrian Mardare took the silver medal after he covered a distance of 81.48m. The bronze medal went to Lithuania’s Edis Matusevicius, whose best throw of the night was 79.31m.

Trinidad and Tobago’s Keshorn Walcott, the 2012 Olympic champion, could manage a best throw of only 78.26m that couldn’t get him a podium finish.

Chopra’s best throw at the event was considerably lesser than the distance he covered (86.47m) en route to winning a historic gold medal at the Commonwealth Games.

Chopra, who has been training in Finland, had finished fourth in the first Diamond League in Doha, Qatar, with a personal best throw of 87.43m but hasn’t been able to conjure similar magic ever since.

Last week, he finished fifth at the Rabat Diamond League with a best throw of 83.32m.

So, the victory at the Sotteville Athletics Meet augurs well for his Asian Games preparation.