Published: Aug 09, 2024, 05:04 PM (IST)
Edited: Aug 09, 2024, 05:05 PM (IST)
Legendary Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar couldn’t keep calm after Olympian Arshad Nadeem made history at the Paris Olympics by winning the gold medal at the Javelin Throw final and also set up the Olympic record with his 92.97m throw. He also became Pakistan’s first Olympic gold medallist since the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
The previous Olympic record was held by Norway’s Andreas Thorkildsen who set it with his throw of 90.57m during the 2008 Beijing games. Nadeem ended up beating India’s Neeraj Chopra by a good enough margin as Neeraj’s best throw in the event reached 89.45m. Nadeem ended the night with another magnificent throw that reached 91.79m.
Following the gold-medal haul, Akhtar shared a video on his social media handle congratulating Nadeem.
“Out of nowhere, this son of a lion has won Pakistan a gold medal. What a man you are Arshad! You have achieved this on your own, with your own hard-work and calibre. Many congratulations to you Arshad, and the whole of Pakistan. The entire mood of the country has changed with 1 gold medal. Just because of one guy, Arshad, has got Pakistan trending across the whole world,” he said.
“Arshad Nadeem’s success has a story behind it, which is about Rizwan and the national hospital. Rizwan got Arshad treated and also got his surgery done, not only in Pakistan, but also sent him to England. And now Arshad won the gold medal. So so proud of you Arshad. This is not about one gold. Pakistan sent 7 athletes and now have 1 gold medal from them. Brilliant. You have done something that no one expected,” he added.
It remains unclear whether the man Akhtar referred to in the video is Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Muhammad Rizwan or someone else.
