Javelin giant Arshad Nadeem winning Pakistan’s first Olympics gold medal in 40 years bagged him a combined cash prize announcement of Rs151 million from Punjab and Sindh on Friday.
At the Paris Olympics, 27-year-old Arshad stormed the field to take a terrific, historic gold at the elite men’s javelin with a mammoth 92.97m off his second throw.
It was an Olympic record, erasing the existing one of 90.57m, set by Andreas Thorkildsen at Beijing 2008.
Hailing him as the “hero who won the hearts of millions of Pakistanis”, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz announced a reward of Rs100 million.
She also announced the construction of a sports city in his hometown of Mian Channu in his name.
“The journey from the small village of Mian Chanu to the Paris Olympics is worthy of praise, making a new Olympics record is proof of dedication,” she said in a statement issued by state broadcaster PTV.
PTV also quoted Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab as saying that “the Sindh government has announced Rs50m for the national hero.”
“A sports academy named after Arshad Nadeem would be established in Karachi,” Wahab was quoted as vowing.
Separately, Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori announced Rs1m for Arshad.
“I announce Rs1m for national athlete Arshad Nadeem for his historical success,” he said in a post on X.
Detailing the javelin thrower’s achievement, he said, “Many congratulations to the entire nation on the historic Olympics success.”
Praises continue for ‘national pride’
Separately, in his congratulatory message, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif praised Arshad’s “exceptional achievement”, Radio Pakistan reported.
Terming it a “gift to the people of Pakistan”, the prime minister said the javelin thrower had become a “symbol of national pride and inspiration for future generations”.
PM Shehbaz watched the live stream of the Olympics performance, Radio Pakistan said. The PML-N also shared a video of the premier cheering on the country’s superstar athlete.
The prime minister said “seeds sown in the form of Punjab Youth Festival” during his tenure as the Punjab chief minister were “now yielding remarkable results, bringing honour to Pakistan on the global stage”.
Meanwhile, President Asif Ali Zardari said Arshad’s win was “not just a personal triumph, but a victory for the entire country”, Radio Pakistan reported.
Praising the athlete’s “dedication and hard work”, the president said it was a moment of immense pride and wished the athlete continued success in the future.
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and his Balochistan counterpart Sarfraz Bugti also extended their felicitations to Arshad, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported.
In his message, Bugti called Arshad a “brave and talented young athlete”. He expressed the hope that Arshad’s achievement would motivate others to strive for excellence in their respective fields.
NA passes resolution for civil award
A session of the National Assembly today also saw heaps of praises for the Olympic record-holder.
The lower house of the Parliament passed a unanimous resolution recommending the government to award the highest civil award to Arshad, Radio Pakistan reported.
The resolution, moved by Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, congratulated Arshad on his win and also suggested the government take steps to promote sports in the country.
“The entire nation commends [Arshad’s] victory and takes pride in it,” said PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari.
“[Arshad] made possible what was impossible as a result of his hard work,” Bilawal said, asserting that the feat was “another evidence” that when Pakistan’s youth were given a chance, they won.
The PPP MNA called for consensus on supporting local talent, saying that the youth possessed enough capability to “not just win Olympics and cricket world cups but also football world cup” if the government supported them.
Bilawal brought attention to Karachi’s Lyari area, asserting that the children there had ample talent to win even FIFA games. He then recalled meeting a few girls in Peshawar who had obtained a black belt in Taekwondo and were winning medals for Pakistan.
“But unfortunately, neither the federal nor the provincial governments stood with [such talented people] as they should have,” the PPP leader rued.
He called on the federal sports minister to hold discussions with his provincial counterparts and establish an endowment fund for each province.
Opposition Leader in the NA Omar Ayub called for the athlete to be given a grand welcome on his return home while Khawaja Asif pointed out that Pakistan had won an Olympics gold medal after decades.
Mustafa Kamal of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) congratulated Arshad as well. He also lamented the lack of “investment” and support provided to local talent.
Meanwhile, in the Senate, Deputy Chairman Syedaal Khan Nasar said the House would arrange a dinner in honour of Arshad, Radio Pakistan reported.
Nasar said the country’s pride would also be awarded with prizes.
Taking the floor, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said the government was committed to providing every possible facility to promote sports in the country.
Paying glowing tribute to Arshad for winning the gold medal, he said the country’s youth should get inspiration from this great achievement.
‘Amazing feeling’ to win: Arshad
For the under-powered Pakistan contingent in Paris — with the once-legendary men’s hockey team absent from the Olympic stage — Arshad’s win was arguably the country’s greatest moment in decades.
Arshad’s gold is Pakistan’s only gold medal outside of hockey, which they last won 40 years ago at Los Angeles in 1984. It is also Pakistan’s first medal of any colour since 1992.
Before Arshad’s remarkable victory, Pakistan had never won an individual gold medal at a Summer Games. Prior to Thursday, only two Pakistan athletes had won individual medals of any colour — Mohammad Bashir’s wrestling bronze in 1960 and Hussain Shah’s boxing bronze in 1988.
“It’s an amazing feeling … to win Olympic gold,” a beaming Arshad told reporters afterwards.
“I’m thankful to Allah for giving me the fruit of my labour and to all the people back home who prayed for me. I’ll try to do even better next time around.”
“I would like to say a special word of thanks to Dr Ali Sher Bajwa, who helped me during surgery and rehabilitation, and to my coach Salman Butt who ensured I came back even stronger and better,” he said, before adding that his gold medal was an “Independence Day gift for the country”.
“I was feeling so good today that I almost botched up my run-up,” Arshad would admit later.
“When I threw the javelin, I got the feel of it leaving my hand, and sensed it could be an Olympic record, God-willing,” Arshad said.
Chopra gets silver but ‘not that happy’
Arshad, who compared his Olympic clash with Chopra to the two nations’ rivalry in cricket, has previously said it is challenging being a non-cricket athlete in Pakistan as resources and facilities for his sport are scarce.
But if Chopra’s huge following in India since winning Olympic gold is anything to go by, Arshad’s performance on Thursday could change that.
Chopra, who has more than nine million Instagram followers, has had a huge impact in raising the profile of athletics in India, World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said on Thursday.
Chopra, the strongest by far in qualifying and favourite to retain his title, struggled. His throw of 89.45, which won him the silver medal, was his only valid effort as he fouled on his five other attempts.
“I’m not that happy with my performance today and also my technique and runway was not that good,” said Chopra, who has struggled with a groin injury.
Grenada’s Anderson Peters took bronze with 88.54, a moment of redemption for the twice-world champion who failed to make the final at the Tokyo Games three years ago.
Peters hurled the javelin 88.54m on his fourth attempt to knock Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch, who won silver in Tokyo, into fourth place.
