Track and field athlete Arshad Nadeem received a warm welcome as he landed in Lahore, Pakistan on Sunday morning, having secured a gold medal for the country in the men's javelin throw final in the Paris 2024 Olympics. The 27-year-old was seen hugging his father and a parade was organised for him as a massive crowd gathered, with visuals surfacing on social media.
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Nadeem ended Pakistan's long-standing Olympic medal drought with a record-breaking throw of 92.97 meters, thereby clinching gold. While defending champion and his Indian counterpart Neeraj Chopra was the firm favourite, Nadeem proved to be head and shoulders above him. Wishes poured from all walks of the country as Nadeem clinched the first gold for Pakistan in Athletics.
The Pakistani athlete visibly grew emotional as he won. In a another video surfaced on Saturday, Nadeem was mobbed by fans outside Pakistani embassy in Paris. He was also welcomed at Lahore airport via a water cannon.
"I was even confident of throwing beyond 92.97m" - Arshad Nadeem
Following his performance, Nadeem thanked everyone who kept him in their prayers and credited his fitness for the performance he gave. He also vowed to work harder moving forward and target throwing breaking his own record. As quoted by NDTV, he stated:
"I am thankful to the nation. Everyone prayed for me, and I was hopeful of doing well. Over the years, I got a knee injury and recovered, and worked hard on my fitness. I was even confident of throwing beyond 92.97m, but that throw was enough for me to get the gold. I will continue to work hard and give my best in the days and months to come. I am planning to throw beyond this mark as well."
