Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra got India’s first-ever athletics medal at the Olympics. The 23-year-old farmer’s son from Khandra village near Panipat in Haryana produced a second-round throw of 87.58m in the finals to stun the athletics world and end India’s 100-year wait for a track and field medal in the Olympics.

In an earlier interview with ESPN, Chopra spoke about his diet and also about his favourite street food. 

“On match days, I don’t like to eat anything that’s too fatty. I prefer eating things like salads or fruits. I also like to eat things like grilled chicken breast and eggs,” he said. 

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He also revealed that he has sweet tooth. 

“I usually restrict the amount of sweets I eat normally so when I get the chance to have a cheat meal, I’ll usually eat a lot of sweets,” Chopra told the outlet. 

Surprisingly, Chopra, who bagged gold medals in both Commonwealth Games and Asian in 2018, also revealed why ‘gol gappas’ are best street food for athletes.

“I think there is no harm in eating gol gappas. It’s mostly water and most of your stomach gets filled with water. The papri is quite big but the amount of flour is very little. It’s mostly water that’s going inside you. There is some amount of spice but that’s another matter,” the 23-year-old said. 

“If you are talking about gol gappas, there’s about as much flour as would be in a couple of rotis. Even if think you are eating a lot, you are mostly filling yourself with water. Of course, I wouldn’t suggest you have them daily but I think it’s ok for an athlete to have a few gol gappas once in a while,” he added.

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Apart from the Asian Games, Chopra also won gold in three competitions in 2018, including the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games in Australia, the Sotteville Athletics Meet in France, and the Savo Games in Finland.