Arshad secures spot in javelin throw final at Paris Olympics

Arshad secures spot in javelin throw final at Paris Olympics

Asher Butt 

Pakistan's star athlete, Arshad Nadeem, has qualified for the final round of the Men's Javelin Throw at the Paris Olympics 2024. With a remarkable first-attempt throw of 86.59 meters, Nadeem easily surpassed the qualifying mark of 84 meters, securing his place among the top twelve competitors.

Nadeem's qualification comes as a beacon of hope for Pakistan, as he is the nation's last remaining contender for a medal at the Olympics. The country has been eagerly anticipating a medal since the 1992 Barcelona Games, where Pakistan secured a bronze in field hockey.

The javelin throw final is scheduled for August 8, where Nadeem will face stiff competition from world-class athletes, including India's Neeraj Chopra and Grenada's Anderson Peters, who also qualified for the final.

Pakistanis are now rallying behind Nadeem, hoping he can replicate his previous successes and bring home a coveted Olympic medal. His silver medal at the World Championships and gold at the Commonwealth Games have set high expectations, and the nation is eager to witness another historic moment in Pakistan's sporting history.

Pakistan sent a total of seven athletes and six of them have been out of their respective events. The 27-year-old is Pakistan’s last and biggest hope for a medal in the Olympics.

This marks Nadeem's second consecutive Olympic final, following his impressive fifth place finish in Tokyo. The medal round of Javelin Throw will be played on August 8 at 11:25pm Pakistan Standard Time (PST).

Nadeem won a silver medal at the World Championship last year meanwhile in the Commonwealth Games 2022, he won the gold medal, becoming the first Pakistani athlete since 1962 to win gold at the competition, with a massive throw that covered 90.18 metres distance.

It is worth mentioning here that Arshad Nadeem is Pakistan’s last hope for a medal in the ongoing Paris Olympics as all of their remaining athletes have been knocked out of the medal race.

Pakistan last won a medal in the Olympics during the 1992 Summer Games in Barcelona, however, Arshad is hopeful that he will once again bring the glory to the country.

“I’m fit and well-prepared and I’ve worked really hard for this prestigious event,” he said and added: “I feel I can achieve my goal of winning a medal.”

“Arshad Nadeem has qualified for the final round with a throw of 86.59 meters,” Multan Sultans, a cricket franchise sponsoring Nadeem at the Paris Olympics, wrote on social media platform X. 

“Congratulations Arshad Nadeem!“

It would be Pakistan’s first individual medal since Hussain Shah’s bronze in Seoul (1988) and the first-ever medal for Pakistan in athletics.

Pakistan’s performance at Paris Olympics

Barring Arshad, no Pakistani athlete even made it past the first round at the Paris Olympics. Their sprinter, Faiqa Riaz, was the best athlete of the remaining six, finishing sixth in 100m heat 2. Meanwhile, swimmer Muhammad Ahmed Durrani was their worst performer, ending 25th in the 200m freestyle.

Pakistan contingent for Paris Olympics:

Athletics: Arshad Nadeem, Faiqa Riaz, Salman Iqbal Butt (support staff), Dr. Ali Sher Bajwa (support staff).

Swimming: Mohammad Ahmed Durrani, Jehanara Nabi, Lt Col (retired) Ahmed Ali Khan (support staff).

Shooting: Ghulam Mustafa Bashir, Gulfam Joseph, Kishmala Talat, Col Junaid Ali (support staff), Gennady Solodovnikov (support staff).

Contingent officials: Mohammad Shafiq (chef de mission), Javaid Shamshad Lodhi (deputy chef de mission); Zainab Shaukat (admin officer).