India’s Neeraj Chopra has missed out on becoming the country’s first athlete to win two consecutive Olympic gold medals. The Tokyo champion won the silver medal in the final of the men’s javelin throw event at the Paris Olympics. In a result that created a stir in the athletics world, Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem won the gold medal with a new Olympic record of 92.97 meters throw.
Neeraj’s second throw was his only valid throw in which he threw 89.45 meters, apart from this all his five attempts were fouls. Nadeem made a new Olympic record by throwing 92.97 meters in his second throw. His sixth and last throw was 91.79 meters. Arshad Nadeem ended Pakistan’s 40-year-long wait for an Olympic gold medal. This is the first Olympic medal since the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
Everyone was surprised by Arshad Nadeem’s performance. For the first time in the history of the Olympics, no European stood on the podium. Asians were ahead 1-2 in the final of the men’s javelin throw event. Anderson Peters of Grenada finished third. Arshad praised Nadeem’s performance and said that he performed well.
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Neeraj Chopra praised Arshad
While talking to Aaj Tak, Neeraj Chopra said, ‘Whoever has worked hard will get what he deserves. Arshad Nadeem respects us a lot and it is our duty that if someone talks to us nicely, we should also talk nicely. The throw that Arshad has done was very good and it has come out at the right place, where it was needed. Today was the day that I thought the throw should have come out, because this time comes after four years. Today I felt that maybe it would happen, but today was probably not my day. Arshad has played many competitions before, today finally it has happened that Arshad made a good throw. Today was his day, he got a chance to celebrate. We will keep playing like this in the competition in the future. Javelin is a game in which many countries participate. It is possible that in the future an athlete from a third country will win.’
Who is Arshad Nadeem?
Arshad Nadeem’s story is inspiring. Born on January 2, 1997 in Mian Channu, a town in Punjab, Arshad is the third eldest of seven siblings. Arshad’s family was not financially strong as his father, a construction worker, was the sole earning member of the family. At one point, Arshad’s village raised money for his training and travel to international competitions. Arshad’s father Muhammad Ashraf said, “His fellow villagers and relatives donated money so that he could travel to other cities for his training and events in his early days.”
Arshad Nadeem once wanted to become a cricketer
Arshad’s athletic ability was evident from his early school years, where he excelled in various sports such as cricket, badminton, football and athletics. His passion for cricket led him to play at the district level, but his performance in athletics competition caught the attention of coach Rashid Ahmed Saqi, who took him under his tutelage and honed his talent.
Before focusing on javelin throw, Nadeem also competed in shot put and discus throw. Nadeem’s career in javelin throw began in 2015, and he received a scholarship from World Athletics in 2016, allowing him to train at the IAAF High-Performance Training Centre in Mauritius. Despite making his Olympic debut three years ago, Arshad has not received the training facilities that his counterparts have in the last few years. The javelin thrower participated in his first Diamond League earlier this year.
PAK had not won any Olympic medal for 32 years, now Nadeem has won the first individual gold
Source (PTI) (NDTV) (HINDUSTANTIMES)