Arshad Nadeem misses out on medal but wins nation over

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s star athlete Arshad Nadeem, who was competing in the Tokyo Olympics' javelin throw final on Saturday, missed out on a medal but won the nation over with the spirit and determination he displayed throughout the contest.

Although there were a total of 12 contestants participating, all eyes were on how the Pakistani athlete performs compared to his opponent from India, Neeraj Chopra. The action began at 4:00pm, according to Pakistan Standard Time. In his first throw, Nadeem's javelin covered a distance of 82.4 metres. India's Chopra threw his to a distance of 87.03 metres. At the end of the first throw, India ranked first, whereas Pakistan was in 6th place. In the second throw, Chopra scored a distance of 87.58m, whereas Nadeem's attempt resulted in a foul, because he crossed the line. The third throw resulted in Chopra scoring 76.70m and Nadeem, who was in the ninth spot, moved up to fourth place after scoring 84.62m.

Therefore, at the end of three rounds, Nadeem finished fourth and qualified for the final round.

In the last round, Nadeem's first throw resulted in a distance of 82.91m, whereas Chopra overstepped and got a foul. In the second throw, Nadeem threw the javelin to a distance of 81.98, whereas Chopra overstepped yet again and got a foul. In the third and final attempt, Nadeem was unable to have a valid throw counted as he overstepped the line. Chopra, meanwhile, threw the javelin at a distance of 84.24m.

India's Chopra came in first with a score of 87.58m to win a gold, in a first for the country in the athletics category. Czech Republic's Vadlejch came second with a result of 86.67m and won silver, and Czech Republic's Vesely came in third with a score of 85.44m and bagged the bronze medal.

According to the rules of the contest, in round one of the final competition, each contestant is allowed three attempts to throw. This follows with the eight athletes on the top advancing into round two with three more attempts, while the rest are eliminated. The best of the six throws are taken into account.

Pakistan has not won an Olympic medal since 1992. The last Olympic medal for the country was a bronze, claimed by the Hockey team at Barcelona. Before that, Boxer Hussain Shah had brought an individual medal home in 1988.

All of Arshad Nadeem's relatives, friends, and neighbours were very excited and confident that he will win a medal for the country at the Tokyo Olympics and they gathered at his home to watch the final round of the game.

Arshad Nadeem apologised for not coming up to the expectations of the people.

Arshad took a leap from Mian Channu to Tokyo with sheer hard work and self-reliance on his abilities, skills, passion and love to bring fame for the country. Though Arshad did not win medal at Tokyo Olympics for the country, but he won hearts of the millions of Pakistanis living across the world.

When Arshad used to train in the slums of his village with rusty exercise weights, India was spending millions of rupees in preparing and training their gold medal winning athlete Neeraj Chopra, with modern training equipment. During his training in Europe, highly trained coaching staff with even a minute knowledge of the sport remained attached with him. And after he won the medal at the Olympics, the Haryana government announced Rs60 million cash award for Neeraj and a grade-1 government job.

Arshad Nadeem could not win a medal but still he will be returning as a hero. Arshad Nadeem finished fifth with a score of 84.62. Earlier, weightlifter Talha Talib missed medal for the country after he also slipped to fifth place while rest of the 10 participating players were a disappointment.

In qualifying round, Arshad threw his best, covering the distance of 85.16m. But, in the final he missed three throws out of six. Remember, he was the first-ever Pakistani athlete to qualify in the final of any event of Olympics.

The Athletics Federation of Pakistan under Maj R Akram Sahi did what it could to provide every possible support for his training. But lack of resources and proper government support kept Arshad from being the best of the best.

Even Prime Minister Imran Khan's best wishes to Olympian Arshad Nadeem as he was gearing up to enter the Javelin Throw final at the Tokyo Olympics did not do any wonders. In a Twitter post by the PM's Office, the 24-year-old javelin throw champ was lauded and was uplifted with prayers and best wishes for his success in the final.

Arshad Nadeem, born on January 2, 1997, was Pakistan’s javelin throw specialist. Arshad, who represents Wapda, in Dec 2019, established a new South Asian Games record with a throw of 86.29m that throw earned him direct qualification to the 2020 Summer Olympics. Arshad Nadeem had previously won four national championships and set three national records, but 2019 proved to be his most successful year yet.

Arshad Nadeem, who belongs to Mian Channu, a small city in Khanewal district, is the third oldest among five brothers. Arshad was an exceptionally versatile athlete from his early school years. Though he dabbled in all the sports on offer in his school including cricket, badminton, football, and athletics, his passion was cricket and he soon found himself playing it at district level tape-ball tournaments. Upon entering grade seven in school, Arshad caught the eyes of Rasheed Ahmad Saqi during an athletics competition. Saqi had a history of developing sportspeople in the division.

The PML-N Vice-President Maryam Nawaz lauded Arshad Nadeem for his spectacular effort at the Tokyo Olympics — which was also praised by the whole nation.

Maryam Nawaz, taking to Twitter, said: "It is not about winning or losing; it is about getting out there and putting up a fight. That is what makes you a winner! We are all super proud of you champ!"

Japanese Ambassador Kuninori Matsuda also felicitated Arshad Nadeem for bagging 5th position in the final of men’s javelin throw event at the Tokyo Olympics.

“Though, unfortunately, you could not win a place on the medal podium but, I believe, you have won many hearts back home for your brilliant performance in the world’s mega event. I congratulate you for having the honour of competing in the final round played for the medals. Keep up your efforts with fresh zeal and I am sure, the day is not far when you will be on the victory stand,” the ambassador added.