KARACHI: Pakistan’s premier javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem on Thursday said that he is determined to break the 90-metre mark in the World Athletics Championship slated to be held in Oregon, US, from July 15 to 24.
“Yes, it’s my plan to break the 90-metre bloc, a target which can also land me on the victory podium in the global event,” Arshad told ‘The News’ in an interview from South Africa.
Arshad has been training at the North West University campus in Potchefstroom, a city 120 kilometre away from Johannesburg.
He is accompanied by Pakistan No2 javelin thrower Mohammad Yasir. They are being trained by world renowned coach Terseus Liebenberg of South Africa who will accompany Arshad during the global event which is expected to be competitive as some of the greatest throwers of the world will be eyeing a fightback after early fall in Tokyo 2020.
Arshad is confident to get the maximum out of his training on foreign soil. “I know it’s a big event but I am more than confident to get advantage of my hard work here,” he said.
Arshad has been constantly growing as an athlete, having won medals in a handful of major events, including the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia where he won bronze.
Arshad said he has improved a lot during training in South Africa. “I feel that I have been growing here and learning fast. If I remain fit then I will give good news to the nation from the US,” said Arshad, who also has to his credit bronze medals in the Islamic Games and Asian Junior Championship.
Arshad impressed the global fans through his stunning fifth-placed finish during Tokyo Olympics last year, a feat which earned for not only fame but also wealth which has also transformed his entire career.
Boasting a personal best throw of 86.38 metre which he had recorded at an international meet in Iran in April last year, Arshad said that it would be helpful if he went to the US a few days before the event.
“It will definitely benefit me if I go there a few days before the global event which will help me acclimatise with the conditions,” said Arshad, who is expected to return home in the next few days to get a US visa and also secure a South Africa visa as his current visa is going to expire in a few days.
He will then go back to South Africa for training and will stay there until the World Championship.
Arshad has ahead a few back-to-back major events, including the Commonwealth Games, Islamic Games and Asian Games. All these will be held within a space of two months.
But Arshad is ready for the task, saying he will win a medal in all these events. “I will definitely get a medal in all these events, Insha Allah. I will improve my performance in the Islamic Games and Asian Games as I earned bronze in these events last time and will definitely go for a medal in the Commonwealth Games also,” Arshad said.
Arshad had featured in the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games but failed to impress due to a back injury.
In his previous World Championship in Doha in 2019, Arshad recorded an 81.52m throw which was also a national record.
Arshad is battling an elbow injury and plans to properly treat it after these international events. “My elbow problem is being treated along with training here. My first target is to deliver in the coming few events and then will try to treat it properly,” he said.
Arshad said that Yasir has also made good improvement during training in South Africa. “Yasir has also shown improvement. He featured in two competitions here and has recorded 70m and 75m throws,” he said.