Pakistan’s only medal hope shines as Arshad Nadeem qualifies for Paris Olympics final round

Pakistan’s star athlete, Arshad Nadeem, has kept the nation's hopes for a medal alive at the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024 by securing a spot in the final round of the javelin throw event.

In the qualification round held on Tuesday, Nadeem, competing in Group B, reached the final by throwing 86.59 metres on his first attempt while the qualifying standard was 84 metres.

The highly anticipated final is set to take place on Thursday, August 8.

Given that other Pakistani athletes failed to qualify for the medal stages, the entire nation is now looking to Arshad Nadeem to bring home a medal. 

This marks the second consecutive Olympic final appearance for Arshad, who qualified with a solid 86.59-metre throw, placing him fourth among the qualifiers.

India’s Neeraj Chopra led the qualifiers with an impressive throw of 89.34 metres, securing his place in the final.

He was followed by Grenada’s Anderson Peters, who achieved an 88.63-metre throw, and Brazil’s Luiz Maurício da Silva, whose 85.91-metre attempt earned him the third qualifying spot.

In Group A, Germany’s Julian Weber dominated with a strong 87.76-metre throw, and secured his place in the finals. Kenya’s Julius Yego, the silver medalist from the 2016 Olympics, delivered the second-best throw of the season with an 85.97-metre attempt. 

Czech athlete Jakub Vadlejch claimed the third spot in Group A with a solid 85.63-metre throw on his first attempt. England’s Toni Keranen made a massive Olympic debut with an 85.27-metre throw.

All eyes are now on the final round, where Arshad Nadeem will aim to bring home Pakistan's first-ever Olympic gold.