Another gold for Nadeem
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While Pakistan's cricket scene struggles on the international stage, Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem — hailing from the small village of Mian Channu in Punjab — continues to offer victorious morsels of hope for the nation's sporting future. Nadeem has just won gold in the men's javelin final at the 2025 Asian Athletics Championship, with a mighty 86.4 metre throw.
This historic win marks only the third time Pakistan has claimed gold at the championship, ending a 55-year drought since Muhammad Younis' victory in the 800-metre race in 1973.
Nadeem's triumphs not only cement his place as a national hero but also continually highlight much-needed dialogue about the potential of Pakistani athletes that has long been neglected. Nadeem's Olympic win itself was nothing short of a miraculous testament to the power of community support.
His journey into javelin throwing started off with humble beginnings and makeshift equipment. Weight-training equipment was improvised and crowdfunded, with the help of a journalist who initiated the campaign.
While these stories make for an inspiring and heartwarming tale of an underdog rising to international stadiums, there are thousands of children across the country dreaming to be athletes who are instead forced to give up.
Pakistan not only lacks professional training centres for athletes but also falls significantly short in supporting its national talent through adequate sponsorships and funding. This systemic neglect has left many promising athletes to rely on personal grit, or often sheer luck.
Yet, Arshad Nadeem's recurrent success proves that Pakistan possesses the sporting talent needed to excel on international stages. He stands as a testament to the power of hard work, discipline, and passion for a dream. The recent win is, again, a landmark achievement that inspires a new generation to believe in greatness despite all odds.
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Remember a time when your happiness was directly linked to cricket? Fortunately for those whose mood is entirely dependent on the sporting achievements of others, cricket no longer has to bear that burden alone. Now, thanks to Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem, Pakistani glory and joy is best channelled through the man's right arm, as the athlete spearheaded his way to another gold medal in the men's javelin final with an 86.40m throw at the Asian Athletics Championship in Gumi, South Korea on Saturday. As Arshad proved in spades during the Paris 2024 Olympics, powering his way to golden glory following an epic 92.7m toss of his javelin, he has become a mascot for national pride. With an inevitable rendition of Dil Dil Pakistan (our de facto shot of joy) echoing through the stadium as South Korea's small Pakistani community cheered him on, the wave of tears and celebrations spreading throughout Arshad's hometown of Mian Channu showcased his already cemented heroic status. 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A dig at India With Arshad's direct opponent, Sachin Yadav of India, walking away with a silver medal, it would be inconceivable that no one would bring up this irresistibly juicy fact in the comments section – although the highlight should go to one refreshingly un-salty Indian fan intent on spreading positivity. "Arshad Nadeem is number 1, with love from India!" wrote the fan alongside an Indian flag emoji. "Finally Indians have admitted that they lost the war," added another fan, unable to resist bringing up the events of May still fresh in everyone's minds. Predictably, Pakistani fans, with their expertise in using memes to extract maximum hilarity in any situation, rose to the occasion – yes, even here where no humour was needed to act as a bandaid. 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