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In a historic moment for Pakistan, Arshad Nadeem secured the country’s first individual Olympic gold medal in track and field on Thursday. The javelin thrower from Mian Channu set a new Olympic record with a spectacular 92.97-meter throw at the Paris Games.
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Nadeem’s performance ended Pakistan’s 32-year medal drought at the Olympics. After a no-throw in his first attempt, Nadeem unleashed his record-breaking second throw, which remained unmatched throughout the competition.
India’s Neeraj Chopra, the reigning champion, claimed silver with an 89.45-meter throw on his second attempt. Grenada’s Anderson Peters took bronze, marking his first Olympic medal, with a throw of 88.54 meters.
Nadeem’s achievement is remarkable on multiple fronts:
- It marks Pakistan’s first individual gold medal at the Olympics.
- It’s the country’s first track and field medal.
- It’s only the second time a South Asian athlete has reached the podium in track and field.
- The throw broke the previous Olympic record of 90.57 meters, set by Andreas Thorkildsen of the Netherlands at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
- It now stands as the sixth-longest throw in javelin history and the best in the world this year.
The final reignited the Pakistan-India rivalry between Nadeem and Chopra, who have competed closely in recent years. In last year’s World Athletics Championships, Chopra won gold while Nadeem secured silver.
Chopra, who entered the final as the top seed, struggled with five foul throws out of six attempts. His sole valid throw of 89.45 meters was enough to secure the silver medal.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif congratulated Nadeem on social media platform X, stating, “You’ve made the whole nation proud young man.”
This victory marks a significant milestone in Pakistan’s Olympic history and cements Arshad Nadeem’s place among the world’s elite javelin throwers.
