GUMI: Pakistan’s Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem won gold with a massive 86.40m in the men’s javelin final at the Asian Athletics Championship being held in Gumi, South Korea, ARY News reported
Nadeem, narrowly missed breaking the championship record of 86.72m but secured the top spot in Asian Championship.
India’s Sachin Yadav earned the silver medal with a 85.16m throw, while Japan’s Yuta Sakiyama took bronze with 83.75m. Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage, who led early in the competition, finished fourth with an 83.27m throw, missing the podium. Pakistan’s Yasir Sultan placed eighth with a 75.39m effort.
Nadeem’s performance captivated the crowd, with ‘Dil Dil Pakistan’ echoing through the stadium as he competed in his first international event since the Paris Olympics.
Starting slowly with throws of 75.64m and 76.80m, he surged to the lead with an 85.57m throw on his third attempt. After throws of 83.99m and 83.44m, Nadeem sealed the gold with a commanding 86.40m on his final attempt.
It is worth mentioning here that the Pakistani Athlete Arshad Nadeem competed at the 2024 Olympics in Paris and stunned the world with a record-breaking javelin throw surpassing 90 meters, marking the sixth-longest throw globally.
The achievement earned him the nation’s highest civilian honor, Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, and he was welcomed home with huge celebrations across Pakistan.
Following his remarkable achievement, the federal and provincial governments awarded the javelin thrower cash prizes, while private organizations announced additional rewards for the national hero.
In a recent interview, the Olympic gold medallist disclosed that while he received some of the promised prizes from government officials the rewards announced by the private organizations remain unfulfilled.
Read more: Hilal-e-Imtiaz conferred on Olympian Arshad Nadeem
