Pakistani Javelin Thrower Arshad Nadeem is confident with his preparations and eyes a medal in Tokyo Olympics 2020.
Speaking to media, Nadeem said he got enough time to prepare for his competition for August 4. “My preparations are in full swing and I am getting enough time here with international athletes. I am confident to win a medal here and fulfill the expectations of Pakistanis for a medal, pray for me,” he said.
His coach Fayyaz Bukhari sees different Nadeem this time around as the athlete got immense time to train with international athletes. “His throw practice is going well and I hope he can maximize his throw. I haven’t seen him the way he looks right now after training here. Prayers are needed and he will try his best to win the medal,” he concluded.
It must be noted here that Nadeem will participate in the Javelin Throw Group stage at 5:05 am/6:35 am (PST) on August 4. If he qualifies, then the final is on August 7.
Pakistan has only missed one edition of the Olympic Games since its first participation in 1948, and in that first Games appearance it had the first of what would become a number of significant results in men’s hockey.
At the London 1948 Games, Pakistan was beaten 4-1 in a replay of the bronze medal game. At the 1952 Games in Helsinki, Pakistan again just missed out on a medal with another fourth-place finish when it was beaten by Great Britain 2-1 in the bronze medal playoff.
Four years later, at the Melbourne 1956 Games, Pakistan would finally break through and win its first hockey medal and first medal in any sport, a silver, when it lost to India in a tense 1-0 gold medal game. At the 1960 Games, Pakistan would get its revenge, breaking India’s 32-year grip on the Olympic gold medal with a 1-0 victory of its own in Rome.
Over the next eight editions of the Games, Pakistan would win six more men’s hockey medals – two gold, two silver and two bronze. However, Pakistan has not won a medal in men’s hockey since claiming bronze in 1992.
In 1960, wrestler Muhammad Bashir claimed bronze in the men’s 74kg freestyle, Pakistan’s first medal in an individual event. Since then only Hussain Shah Syed has stepped onto an Olympic podium in an individual event, he did it in 1988 when he took bronze in the middleweight boxing competition.
At the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, a seven-member team represented Pakistan in four sports, including three women, the highest number of female athletes to represent the NOC at a single edition of the Games. The first female athlete to represent Pakistan did so in Atlanta in 1996 when Shabana Akhtar took part in the women’s long jump event.
