Javelin thrower becomes first Pakistani athlete to qualify for Tokyo Olympics

KARACHI: A 23-year-old athlete has become the first Pakistani to directly qualify for Tokyo Olympics 2021.

Arshad Nadeem, who hails from Mian Channu in Pakistan’s Punjab province is a javelin thrower who directly qualified for Tokyo Olympics 2021, a global sporting event, which was earlier scheduled to be held in July. It has now been postponed to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Nadeem is a four-time national champion, and among many honours and platitudes, holds the distinction of being the sole representative from Pakistan at the World Athletics Championship at Doha.

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He also represented Pakistan in the 2019 South Asian Games and clinched gold with a throw of 86.29 metres, which also translated into an automatic feature in the Tokyo Olympics as he surpassed the mandatory 85 metres qualification criteria for this event, the national broadcaster notified.  

It is for the first time that a Pakistani athlete qualified for the competition through a world-record throw. So far, only two individuals have won a medal for Pakistan. Wrestler Mohammad Bashir won the bronze medal in Rome 1960 and boxer Hussain Shah won the bronze in Seoul 1988.