Lahore (Pakistan): Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem struggled in terms of facilities while preparing for the 2024 Paris Olympics but Pakistan left no stone unturned while celebrating his achievement of winning elusive gold. The athlete was given a hero’s welcome when he arrived in Lahore and the crowd also went berserk. His reception included a water salute just like what the Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB) did to welcome the T20 World Cup-winning Indian cricket team last month.
Arshad Nadeem won gold
Defending Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra was rated highly by many to win gold but Nadeem came out all guns blazing in the javelin throw final with a massive throw of 92.97 which broke the Olympic record. He broke the Olympic record of 90.57m, owned by Andreas Thorkildsen of Norway in the 2008 Beijing Games. Also, Nadeem became Pakistan’s first-ever individual gold medalist in the history of the Olympics. Also, it was the country’s first medal since the 1992 Games in Barcelona.
Water canon salute to Turkish Airline plane at Lahore airport carrying Pakistans 🇵🇰 first ever individual Olympic Gold Medalist🥇 Arshad Nadeem. pic.twitter.com/BXTIaGZ8tu
— 🇵🇰عمران غنی (@Imranghani77) August 10, 2024
Arshad Nadeem received a grand welcome in Lahore
The 27-year-old arrived at the Lahore airport on Sunday and he was welcomed with a water cannon salute. The enthusiasm amongst fans was very high and there were loud chants by them. He then met his father and the duo hugged. His father then placed a garland around his neck. The crowd was giving loud cheers of "Long Live Arshad Nadeem! Long Live Pakistan!". The Pakistani athlete then got into an open bus parade.
Huge Huge Huge respect for #Arshad_Nadeem ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️👌👌👌#ArshadNadeem #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/5pg7iuuGTL
— Qadir Khawaja (@iamqadirkhawaja) August 11, 2024
Nadeem's inspirational story
Nadeem’s career graph has been an inspirational tale. He was born and raised in a mud-brick house in rural Punjab in Pakistan. As a young boy, he lacked finances so the homemade javelins were his only source of practice. The Pakistani athletes used to practice the sport in the wheat fields.
