Daily Times

PARIS: When Pakistan’s seven athletes started their journey for the Paris Olympic Games 2024, their only medal hope was Arshad Nadeem, the star javelin thrower of the country. Pakistan’s remaining representation in swimming, shooting and sprint had no chance. And as expected, they bowed out in the preliminary rounds. Arshad, the world silver medalist, on Thursday evening, 08-08-2024, at Stade de France defeated defending champion Neeraj Chopra of India to clinch Pakistan’s first Olympic medal in athletics and third individual medal overall since 1948. Pakistan’s last individual medal (bronze) was in boxing at the Seoul Olympics 1988, won by Husain Shah. Pakistan’s first individual medal (bronze) was won by wrestler Mohammad Bashir at the Rome Olympics 1960. Arshad made history in the French capital by winning Pakistan’s first Olympic gold since 1984, when the country’s hockey team triumphed in Los Angeles. It was the first medal of any colour since Barcelona 1992, when the hockey team bagged the bronze. The sum total of Pakistan’s Olympic achievements from 1948 to 2020 was ten medals, eight in hockey, including three golds. Arshad has improved Pakistan’s Olympic record to 11 medals with his dazzling performance. Arshad’s feat, therefore, makes him arguably Pakistan’s greatest-ever Olympian. With Arshad’s triumph, Pakistan has showcased its rising prominence on the international sports stage. Despite previous setbacks and challenges, this moment marked a significant victory, bringing optimism for future successes.

The Mian Channu-born athlete was slow off the blocks, registering a no-throw on his first attempt of the night but shocked everyone on his second attempt, with a monstrous 92.97m throw, which the rest of the field could not even come close for the rest of the competition. Neeraj who also had a foul throw on his first attempt before eventually settling for a silver medal finish with an 89.45m throw on his second attempt. Grenada’s Anderson Peters took home bronze, his first ever Olympic medal, with an 88.54m throw. Arshad’s feat also shattered the previous Olympic record of 90.57m, set by the Netherlands’ Andreas Thorkildsen at the Beijing 2008 Olympics. The throw now stands as the sixth longest throw ever, and the best in the world this year. The javelin throw, simple yet demanding, requires immense strength, precision, and technique. Athletes must launch the spear-like implement as far as possible, mixing athleticism with strategy. Holders of records reveal the rigorous training behind the triumphs. Jan Zelezny, with his world record throw of 98.48 meters established back in 1996, has long dominated this sport. Arshad’s achievement nudged him to the sixth place on the all-time best throw list, which also includes notable athletes like Johannes Vetter from Germany with 97.76 meters, and Thomas Rohler, another German thrower, with 93.90 meters.

It is interesting to note that Arshad did not receive any support from the government as well much needed funds prior to the Paris Games. Arshad had to take the hard route; he had to make do with substandard facilities and few funds (some arranged by the Pakistan Olympic Association), at one time even struggling to get a javelin. Arshad also had to put behind all his physical toll, undergoing surgeries on his elbow and leg in the last few years. Despite facing hardships, Arshad, winner of gold at Birmingham Commonwealth Game 2022, gave all and sundry something to cheer about in this doom and gloom environment of Pakistan. It was incredible. The big question which arises here is would Arshad’s hard earned Olympic medal for his country after more than three decades be able to inspire Pakistan’s sports scenario?

Since independence Pakistan sports are on the map. International sports performances by Pakistan in the last seven decades have much to commend them. Arguably, Pakistan’s performances in many sports have inspired many countries to emulation to future achievements. But the last two decades have been a different story altogether. Over the years, Pakistan sports have gone to the dogs. Pakistan’s performance in international sports is no longer consistent with its population and economic bases. In the 1950s and early 1960s, we were amongst the top five sporting nations in Asia and have now come down to the lowest. We used to excel in major sports. Now we are not even amongst the first 30 out of 45 participating countries even in the Asian Games.

The subject of sports is now a science and this is the starting point that everybody associated with sports in Pakistan needs to accept. There are certain imperatives and they need to be understood clearly. We also need to drill home the importance of sports in our national priorities: how sports provide the only recreational oxygen for masses, educate tolerance and are the only uniting national gel at this critical juncture in our history. Sports are neither a burden on national economy nor an impediment to development, but an engine for economy and development and means to strengthen the socio-economic order. It is indeed a force multiplier to strengthen the federation and promote peace and harmony among provinces. In this fast-changing milieu and with Arshad’s triumph, Pakistan needs to take a fresh start with a new, realistic and scientific sports narrative that may lead to a comprehensive sports policy and develop Pakistan as a powerhouse of sports.

After division of British India in 1947, new country Pakistan first participated at the Olympic Games in 1948 in London, and has sent athletes to compete in every Summer Olympic Games since then, except when they participated in the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Russia (then Soviet Union). Anybody outside the country who spent time watching the last two Olympic Games — Tokyo 2020 in Japan and Rio 2016 in Brazil —- might not realise that sports are played in Pakistan. A nation of 240 million was represented by less than 12 athletes who competed in the qualification phases of their respective events and none of them went beyond this stage and neither did they look close to competing with their highly skilled, trained and battle-hardened opponents.

Since 1948, hockey had been Pakistan’s main hope for an Olympic medal. The hockey squad always formed a major part of Pakistan’s Olympic contingent. It is lamentable that Pakistan hockey, which remained up in the clouds for more than three decades, is not the same force that it used to be, and failed to qualify for three consecutive Olympic Games: Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. Over the years, not one, not two but almost all sports have experienced a sharp slump in our country. It goes beyond misfortune and carelessness and instead appears to be a trend. The older generation still talks and recall with great delight the spellbinding achievements of the past while the present generation only has tales of the past to live on.

Lack of availability of proper facilities and infrastructure, inadequate role of sports federations and lack of support from the government has badly affected Pakistan’s graph in sports. Perhaps the biggest reason for the extraordinary decline in sports in Pakistan is lack of funding and vision. Pakistan’s sports budget is the lowest in South Asia, less than that of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and even Afghanistan. Governments all over the world keep sports and education as their top priority, build infrastructure, hold talent development programmes for players and promote medical sciences in sports to compete the world of sports. But in Pakistan it is totally opposite because sports are not our priority.

It is also very unfortunate that Pakistan sports, over the years, have become politicized and nepotistic. In the national sphere and the sporting arena the root of our dilemma is the notorious system of patronage and imposed cronies, to the exclusion of merit and professionalism. Under the powerful patron’s benevolent gaze, the pick and choose appointees can survive scandals and failures that would crush an ordinary mortal. These are times when one fails to figure out what is keeping Pakistan sports alive. In other countries, people running sports affairs contribute by taking professional decisions and by executing them with competence rather than on the basis of personal preference and bias. But frankly, we are not such a nation.

What more depressing is that sports activities in schools, colleges and universities have touched an all-time low because of diminishing sports fields, poor systems and lack of interest in sports by young generation that have many other options to keep them occupied. But perhaps the worst aspect of this development is that educational administrators no longer feel that sports are an integral part of all decent educational systems. Some even think it is a waste of time. This is one of the main reasons why student representation in our national sports teams is becoming negligible compared to the past when most of our national teams thrived on student and university representation. This particular flaw in our educational system is also one of the major causes of intolerance in our society.

At the same time, cricket has overshadowed all other sports in the country including our national game — field hockey. Television, commercialisation and the advertising world have promoted cricket to an extent that it has become a Mount Everest that is badly affecting other sports in the country. Popularity of cricket, especially among the younger generation, has prevented the growth of other sports activities. Government officials and private sector are not interested in investing in anything other than cricket. Patronising only cricket and ignoring other sports is very unfair. Cricket does not have the kind of global competition that other sports have as its playing is limited to a handful of largely Commonwealth countries.

We have also become a funny nation that likes to live in a world of dreams and fantasies. We dream of excellence at international level in sports without even realising that the present sports set-up in Pakistan just does not have the capacity to deliver. Therefore, those who feel that the present set-up can be result oriented are not living in a realistic world. Modern sports structures all over the world have sports institutes as integral components of their systems. It is unfortunate that after 76 years of independence we have not been able to establish one. There are a variety of reasons for this vital missing link in our sports. People at the helm of affairs either do not realise the importance of this institution or hesitate simply because they do not know how to go about it.

The subject of sports is now a science and this is the starting point that everybody associated with sports in Pakistan needs to accept. There are certain imperatives and they need to be understood clearly. We also need to drill home the importance of sports in our national priorities: how sports provide the only recreational oxygen for masses, educate tolerance and are the only uniting national gel at this critical juncture in our history. Sports are neither a burden on national economy nor an impediment to development, but an engine for economy and development and means to strengthen the socio-economic order. It is indeed a force multiplier to strengthen the federation and promote peace and harmony among provinces. In this fast-changing milieu and with Arshad’s triumph, Pakistan needs to take a fresh start with a new, realistic and scientific sports narrative that may lead to a comprehensive sports policy and develop Pakistan as a powerhouse of sports.

At the same time, looking beyond the medals, the remarkable display of talent in Paris should stirred discussions about the potential development of javelin throwing, especially within cricket-dominant cultures like Pakistan. An emphasis on adequate training facilities and better coaching is deemed necessary for nurturing future stars. Arshad has emerged as an Olympian of note for our present generation, whose perfromance should inspire and act as a wake-up call for the government, and the country’s sporting authorities. Sports are littered with examples of men and women who have performed well against the odds —- that’s partly what keeps us watching as spectators. To rise above again, Pakistan sports require strong financial backup, commitment and self-belief. Only hard and incessant efforts lead to success. Only then the elusive triumphs will replace the current tragedies that demean the country once basking in Olympic golds and world crowns. In the absence of these, we should not dream of reaching the skies!

Arshad Nadeem’s Achievements

1: Gold at Paris Olympics 2024 (France)
2: Silver at World Athletics Championships 2023 Budapest (Hungary)
3: Gold at Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 (United Kingdom)
4: Gold at Islamic Solidarity Games Konya 2021 (Turkey)
5: Bronze at Islamic Solidarity Games Baku 2017 (Azerbaijan)
6: Gold at South Asian Games 2019 Kathmandu (Nepal)
7: Bronze at Asian Games 2018 Jakarta (Indonesia)
8: Bronze at South Asian Games 2016 Guwahati and Shillong (India)