Arshad Nadeem smashes Olympic record, becomes Pakistan's first ever individual gold medallist

Arshad Nadeem laid down the marker during the men’s javelin throw final at the Paris Olympics on Thursday as he threw a stunning 92.97 metres in his second attempt.

Nadeem not only rose to the No. 1 position in the men’s javelin final, he also broke the Olympic record of 90.57m set by Norway’s Andreas Thorkildsen in the Beijing Olympics in 2008. The throw was sixth in the all-time list of biggest throws in javelin history.

Reigning Olympic and world champion Chopra, who had breezed into the final in just one attempt measuring 89.34m — which not only was the best throw in the qualification round but was also the second highest of the year.

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Chopra later moved to the second position with a throw of 89.45m — his season best — in his second attempt.

Both Nadeem and Chopra would hold on to the top two spots till the very end, with Chopra unable to breach the elusive 90-metre mark while Nadeem would do so twice in six attempts — his final attempt measuring 91.79m.

Nadeem, as a result, made history by becoming the first Pakistani athlete to win an individual Olympic gold medal.

Wrestler Muhammad Bashir (Rome 1960) and boxer Hussain Shah (Seoul 1988) were the only Pakistanis to have won individual medals at the Olympics — both bronze — before Nadeem’s heroics on Thursday.

Pakistan’s other medals, eight of them to be precise, have come from the men’s hockey team — three gold medals and as many silver along with two bronze.

It is the second time a South Asian has finished on the podium in track and field after Neeraj’s heroics at Tokyo 2020.