Arshad Nadeem, the Pakistani javelin thrower who secured gold at the recently concluded Paris Olympic Games, has emphasized the need for improved facilities for women athletes in Pakistan. Since returning home with Pakistan’s first Olympic gold medal since 1984, Nadeem has been showered with accolades, including cash prizes, cars, and other gifts. The Governor of Punjab, for instance, awarded him a two million rupee cash prize and a car. However, beyond the personal accolades, Nadeem expressed his desire for the government to fulfill his request for a modernized track and field stadium and a university for women in his hometown – Mian Channu.
Nadeem stressed the importance of access to quality education and facilities for aspiring athletes in his home region. “We badly need facilities for our women and even men to acquire higher education in our area,” he said on the ARY news channel. “Nowadays, young athletes need to be given the best facilities.”
Nadeem, who appeared on the show with his wife Rashida, also shared a lighthearted anecdote about the buffalo gifted to him by his father-in-law as a celebratory gesture. The 27-year-old joked, “I was a bit surprised with the announcement, and I wondered since my father-in-law is a very rich person and has a lot of land…if only he had given me 4-5 acres of farmland instead of the buffalo.”
Rashida, Nadeem’s wife, shed light on the challenges her husband faced prior to the Olympics, including dealing with injuries. “When he went for the Games, I couldn’t sleep for three days,” she said, “and I just kept on praying that he would remain fit and return with a gold medal.”
Salman Butt, Nadeem’s long-time coach, highlighted the athlete’s upcoming return to training. “Arshad knows that he has to work harder to maintain his position as there is great competition in the javelin throw in the international field,” Butt said, acknowledging the challenges ahead. Nadeem will return to training in a month, facing the task of living up to the expectations that now surround him.
