Yasir targets Olympics berth today

LAHORE: Pakistan’s No 2 javelin thrower Mohammad Yasir Sultan will be desperately looking to press for the Paris Olympics seat when he will feature in the Asian Throwing Championship in South Korea on Saturday (today).

The meet will start at 8am PST at Mokpo. Yasir is accompanied by his coach Fayyaz Hussain Bukhari. Yasir is expected to give a breakthrough in the event as he has trained hard for the do-or-die battle. Yasir, who last year got bronze in the Asian Championship in Bangkok, will need to achieve the 85.50 metre throw which is the Olympics standard.

If he fails to do so then he will need to come in top 32 in the world in the rankings which will be released by the World Athletics after the June 30 qualification timeline. Yasir underwent training in Mokpo during the last two days.

His personal best throw is 79.93 metre which he had managed in the Asian Championship in Bangkok. Yasir finished fourth in the Hangzhou Asian Games. His coach Fayyaz Hussain Bukhari is optimistic about his qualification chances.

“We have worked very hard for the last few months. His all bases are loaded and his motivation level is also very good as I am accompanying him on the tour,” Fayyaz told The News from Mokpo on Friday.

“Yesterday we managed good throw in training and we pray to God Almighty for our success,” Fayyaz said. Meanwhile, Pakistan’s premier javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem and his coach Salman Butt got Schengen visas on Friday which will ensure the world silver medallist’s participation in the Paavo Nurmi Games in Finland on June 18. Till filing of the story the flight schedule of the duo was not yet known.

“We are working on that and will let you know in four hours,” Arshad’s coach Salman Butt told The News. Finland’s event will help Arshad shrug off his rustiness and it will clarify where he stands following chronic knee injury. He also had to go to England in recent months for laser surgery.

Arshad last featured in the World Athletics Championship in Budapest, Hungary, last year where he snared historic silver for the country and also qualified for the Paris Olympics. In Paavo Nurmi Games the world’s renowned javelin throwers will be seen and it will be a grand event before the Paris Olympics which is the sole target of Arshad Nadeeem, who had also skipped the last year’s Hangzhou Asian Games.

Arshad also told The News the other day that Finland’s event will help him regain his confidence ahead of the Paris Olympics. Following the Paavo Nurmi Games on June 22 also in Finland there is another event in which Arshad will be featuring. On July 7 he will feature in Diamond League in France. Arshad also underwent five-week training in South Africa recently under the world’s renowned coach Terseus Liebenberg at the North West University.