Paris Olympics: Arshad Nadeem advances to medal round of javelin throw

Pakistan’s javelin ace Arshad Nadeem qualified for the medal round of the javelin throw event at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday.

With six Olympians already out, Pakistan’s hopes for an Olympic medal after 32 years now rest on Nadeem.

India’s Neeraj Chopra took the first throw in Group B and finished with a distance of 89.34 metres, ensuring his qualification for the medal round.

Arshad Nadeem, who threw fifth, also advanced to the next round with a throw of 86.59 metres.

As per the rules, throwers were required to make a minimum throw of 84 meters to qualify for the medal round on August 8.

Pakistan’s javelin hero

Nadeem rose to prominence after finishing fifth in the Tokyo Olympics. In 2022, Nadeem finished fifth in the World Championship in the United States. Soon after, he set a Commonwealth Games record with his best throw of 90.18 metres and won gold in Birmingham.

He then had elbow and left knee surgeries in London, took time to recover, and then competed in the 34th National Games in Quetta in May.

Despite failing to demonstrate his fitness, he won a gold for his departmental team, Wapda. He took a heavy blow in this event when he injured his right knee, forcing him to miss the recent Asian Championship in Bangkok.