Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem showered with cash awards

Pakistan's sensational javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem who won the country's first individual Olympics gold in 40 years is being showered with cash awards by Punjab and other provincial governments and organisations.

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Friday announced a cash award of rupees 100 million for Nadeem. Similarly, the Pakistan Peoples Party's Sindh government announced rupees 50 million for the athlete while the Sukkur city mayor also announced a 'gold crown' for him.

The 27-year-old won the gold at the elite men's javelin throw competition with a mammoth 92.97m throw which broke the Olympic record of 90.57m, set by Andreas Thorkildsen of Norway at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

India's Neeraj Chopra, who won gold at the Tokyo Olympics, took the silver with a season's best effort of 89.45m, adding another chapter to their storied rivalry. Nawaz also said a sports city named after the athlete would be built in his hometown of Khanewal in Punjab province.

Nadeem faced financial woes as well as facilities that all non-cricket playing athletes face in the country. Even after winning a Commonwealth Games gold and World Championship silver in 2022 and 2023, Arshad had to plead for a new javelin before the Paris Olympics as his old one had worn out after years of use.

Perhaps this is why Arshad's first message to his parents from Paris on Thursday is that he is now determined to build a proper academy for athletes in or near his village. Two sports facilities, one in Karachi and another in Sukkur cities of Sindh will also be named after Arshad Nadeem.

Throughout the day, the Pakistani media was running congratulatory messages from President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the Director General military media wing (ISPR), all provincial chief ministers and ministers for Nadeem's “exceptional achievement".

Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Imran Khan also congratulated Nadeem on his X account. "Congratulations to Pakistan's Olympic flag bearer Arshad Nadeem for an absolute brilliant javelin performance winning a gold medal for Pakistan. His persistence & perseverance has done him & the nation proud.

It is the first time any Pakistani has won an individual gold for athletics in the Olympics. He is an inspiration for our younger generation," Khan said. Before Nadeem's victory, Pakistan had never won an individual gold medal in the Olympics. Before this, only two Pakistani athletes had won individual medals of any colour — Mohammad Bashir's wrestling bronze in 1960 and Hussain Shah's boxing bronze in 1988.

• THE OLYMPICS, 2024