Arshad promises his best to end Pakistan’s Olympic medal drought

PARIS (France): Spirited, keen, and ready Arshad Nadeem got a rare opportunity to bring smiles to the faces of millions of Pakistanis eagerly waiting across the globe as he is all set to vie for the Olympic medal at the Sadia De France here today (Thursday).

World’s top 12 javelin throwers will start the quest for Olympic medals at 11.25pm (PST) today with three to come out as medal-winners. Will Arshad Nadeem be finishing on the podium this time around is an eagerly awaited question.

“I am feeling much fitter, and I am in good rhythm this time around. All I need is prayers from the entire nation so that I should be in a position to make my best efforts,” Arshad said in an exclusive interview with ‘The News’ at the Olympic Village.

“A few months back I was struggling with injuries. Dengue hit me hard almost three months back. I was feeling so exhausted and weak that I had lost all hopes of even competing in the Paris Olympics. But the things got better with the passage of time. “I am thankful and highly obliged to Dr Ali Sher Bajwa who made all possible efforts to keep me fit and ready. I owe it to Dr Sahib for helping me regain my fitness ahead of the Olympics. Now I feel ready to give my best. All I need is the nation’s prayers and best wishes.”

Arshad will be the fourth thrower on Thursday evening when 12 will start their mission for an Olympic medal. Arshad is one of the few javelin throwers who has crossed the 90m mark which he did during the Birmingham Commonwealth Games.

Even Neeraj Chopra, one of the favourites for the gold yet again has not crossed the 90m mark so far. The Indian javelin thrower however has the best 89.34m throw going into the finals. Neeraj later talking to ‘The News’ declared that he could have gone even further.

“There was no need to exert extra as I had already made it to the finals with one single throw but you can expect me to go even further on Thursday to achieve gold yet again.” Three years back, his throw of 89.94m was enough to make him the first Indian to win track gold at the Olympics.

For Arshad, who stands at 6 feet three inches tall and weighs 110kg, crossing even the 95m mark is a possibility provided he is in the right state of mind. Since he will be seen in action ahead of Neeraj, chances of making an early impact (like he did in the qualifying round) cannot be ruled out.

“Usually I get off to a slow start with a throw in the high seventies. Since I am feeling much fitter these days, I am confident that I would make the maximum use of initial throws.” Arshad added that he knew well about the Pakistan Olympic history.

“We have nothing to cheer about when it comes to Olympics achievements during the last 32 years. We won hockey bronze in 1992 and boxing individual bronze in 1988. Since then nothing is there to cheer about. I want to end the drought and bring smiles to the faces of all those who want me to excel.”

The star athlete said that since the whole nation is to celebrate Independence Day in the coming days he wanted to win the medal to make the occasion even festive one. Arshad had gone through light training and gym exercises a day ahead of the finals under the watchful eyes of his doctor Ali Sher Bajwa.