Paris: Arshad Nadeem's journey to becoming Pakistan's latest sporting sensation began not with a javelin in hand, but with a cricket ball. Growing up in a modest farming village, Nadeem initially showed promise as a fast bowler. Like many youngsters in Pakistan, he dreamed of wearing the green national team shirt and emulating his idol Shoaib Akhtar.
But fate had different plans, setting him on a path that would see him shatter records and make history at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Nadeem's transition from cricket to javelin was neither immediate nor conventional. It was his high school coach, Rasheed Ahmad Saqi, who first recognized the untapped potential in the young athlete, noting his natural strength and formidable physique, traits well-suited for the javelin throw.
"People think my technique is more like a fast bowler than a javelin thrower," Nadeem said after he clinched Pakistan's first gold medal of the Paris Games on Thursday with an on Olympic record throw of 92.97 meters. "But I am happy with this action and the run-up I use.
That is because of my early strength as a fast bowler." In 2016, Nadeem made the pivotal decision to focus exclusively on javelin. It was a choice that would redefine his life and elevate him to the ranks of Pakistan's sporting legends.
Even though his prodigious talent was evident from the outset, the road to Olympic glory was anything but smooth. A serious knee injury threatened to derail his career, casting doubt on whether he would eve.