Arshad to be without South African coach at CWG

KARACHI: Pakistan’s premier javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem will not have the services of his South African coach Terseus Liebenberg for the Commonwealth Games slated to be held in Birmingham from July 28 to August 8.

It has been reliably learnt that the Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP) wanted Terseus to accompany Arshad during the quadrennial event in England and had requested the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) to request Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) to get him accredited for the Games.

The PSB requested the POA and the NOC responded positively. However, the details which were forwarded to the POA for Terseus’ accreditation were incomplete. The POA requested the Board to share his complete details, which so far have not been provided to the NOC.

“We are still waiting for Terseus’ complete details so that he could be accredited for the Games,” a POA source told ‘The News’.

A well-placed source said that when the federation approached Terseus for sharing his details required for the Commonwealth Games accreditation, he seemed disinterested in the assignment.

“We will again try to contact him tomorrow,” the AFP source said.

Arshad was also without a coach during the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. An AFP source that Arshad is now a mature athlete and will manage himself during the Commonwealth Games.

The AFP source, meanwhile, said that Terseus is expected to accompany Arshad during the World Championship slated to be held in Oregon, US, from July 15 to 24.

“Yes, he has been accredited for the US event and has applied for the US visa,” a source said.

The AFP source said that Terseus is still handling Arshad’s training virtually ahead of the US event.

Arshad and Pakistan No2 javelin thrower Mohammad Yasir underwent a couple of months training in South Africa under Terseus.

Arshad is the only Pakistani athlete featuring in the World Championship.

Arshad joined the training camp a couple of weeks ago at the PSB Coaching Centre, Lahore. He is happy with his training. “It’s going well,” Arshad told ‘The News’ on Friday.

Arshad is fighting against various odds. On the one hand a lot is expected from him during the World Championship, Commonwealth Games and Islamic Games. On the other hand, he is also battling a tennis elbow injury which has put an extra pressure on the Asian Games bronze medallist.

But despite all these challenges, Arshad feels mentally strong. “Yes, I feel mentally very strong and will tackle my injury. It’s not easy if you feel pain. I now also throw during training. England-based Dr Ali Bajwa and Dr Asad are treating my injury and hopefully I will be able to earn medals for Pakistan in the coming events,” Arshad said.

“The big issue is that of time. There is not enough gap in between the events. If you make an effort despite injury in an event you need at least one and a half months for recovery. Let’s see how it goes. It gives me a lot of strength when I feel that I have to win medals for my country and inshaAllah I will play in all these events and try my level best,” Arshad said.

“All my focus is now on the World Championship which will determine how much I can do in the events after that.

If I am able to pull off my personal best performance then I may claim a medal in the global event,” said Arshad, who injured his elbow during the Imam Reza International Athletics Championship in Mashhad, Iran, in April last year where he pulled off his personal best throw of 86.38 metre. He was battling against pain even during the Tokyo Olympics.

AFP has already decided to treat his injury through a surgery after the major events in coming months.