Shoaib Akhtar, Babar Azam, can't keep calm as Arshad Nadeem wins historic Olympic gold: 'If it wasn't for Rizwan...'
Arshad Nadeem hurled a record-setting 92.97m throw in the men's javelin final to become Pakistan's first Olympic medal winner since Barcelona 1992.
Pakistan cricket legend Shoaib Akhtar and incumbent men's team captain in the white-ball format Babar Azam on Thursday could not keep calm after compatriot Arshad Nadeem made history at the Paris Olympics. Nadeem hurled a record-setting 92.97m throw in the men's javelin final to become Pakistan's first Olympic medal winner since Barcelona 1992.
Nadeem breathed life into the competition, which had a quiet start, with a 92.97m on his second try. The attempt saw him break the Olympic record of 90.57m, owned by Andreas Thorkildsen of Norway, in the 2008 Beijing Games, not once but twice. With Neeraj Chopra failing to give him a tough fight, as the Indian managed a best of 89.45m, his only legitimate throw in the final, Nadeem wrapped up the night with a gigantic 91.79m throw on his final attempt.
Following the gold-medal haul, Akhtar shared a video on hos social media handle, where he hailed Nadeem as ‘son of a lion.’
"Out of nowhere, this son of a lion has won Pakistan a gold medal. What a man you are Arshad! You have achieved this on your own, with your own hard-work and calibre. Many congratulations to you Arshad, and the whole of Pakistan. The entire mood of the country has changed with 1 gold medal. Just because of one guy, Arshad, has got Pakistan trending across the whole world," he said.
‘Rizwan should be credited for Arshad Nadeem's success’
The former Pakistan fast bowler then shared a backstory on how a person named 'Rizwan' played a key role in Nadeem's recovery from an injury before heading to the Olympics. However, it remains unclear whether the man Akhtar referred to in the video is Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Muhammad Rizwan.
"Arshad Nadeem's success has a story behind it, which is about Rizwan and the national hospital. Rizwan got Arshad treated and also got his surgery done, not only in Pakistan, but also sent him to England. And now Arshad won the gold medal. So so proud of you Arshad. This is not about one gold. Pakistan sent 7 athletes and now have 1 gold medal from them. Brilliant. You have done something that no one expected. You thrashed the Olympic record and every throw you made went almost beyond 90m," Akhtar added.
Star Pakistan batter Babar, too, joined the bandwagon as he hailed Nadeem's incredible achievement in Paris. He tweeted: “After 30 long years, the gold is back in Pakistan! Huge congratulations to @arshadnadeem29 for this incredible achievement. You've made the entire nation proud.”
Neeraj claimed the second spot in the final as became India's first-ever track-and-field athlete to win two Olympic medals. Anderson Peters of Grenada won the bronze medal with a throw of 88.54m.
