- The 27-year-old athlete broke the distance set by Norwegian Andreas Thorkildsen in 2008.
- He became Pakistan’s first gold medalist in an event other than field hockey.
- India’s Neeraj Chopra came in second with a throw of 89.45m
Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem has broken the Olympic record in the javelin throw with a monstrous throw of 92.97m on his way to victory at the Stade de France.
The monumental effort made him his country’s first medallist in 32 years and its first ever gold medallist in athletics on a historic night for Pakistan.
Norway’s Andreas Thorkildsen has held the javelin record since the 2008 Games but his distance of 90.57m was bettered by more than two metres under the lights of Paris tonight.
Once the 27-year-old’s javelin sank into the ground in front of the Olympic record boxes, gold was all but guaranteed as he left his competitors reeling in his wake.
Silver medallist Neeraj Chopra was three and a half metres behind his Pakistani rival, with the Indian only able to throw 89.45m.
Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem has broken the Olympic record in the javelin throw with a monstrous throw of 92.97m.
Once the 27-year-old’s javelin sank into the ground in front of the Olympic record boxes, gold was all but guaranteed.
The monumental effort made him his country’s first medalist in 32 years.
Nadeem had won gold at the Commonwealth Games two years ago with a throw that exceeded 90 metres, but his form had cooled since that summer.
As he took a deep breath and began to run, his face set in concentration, not even the massive athlete could have anticipated the throw he was about to make.
But from the moment the javelin left his hand at 112km/h, the attempt seemed enormous and the huge crowd at the Stade de France held their breath as the projectile floated through the Paris air.
As it landed firmly on the ground, the cheers from thousands of punters revealed the result: the javelin landed comfortably beyond the 90-metre mark, where the Olympic record stood.
The Pakistani athlete spread his arms out to the crowd in celebration before placing his head in his hands as he realised the significance of what he had just done.
Meanwhile, his coach stood up and clapped loudly as Nadeem received applause from his new legion of fans.
The throw secured Pakistan’s first Olympic gold since the men’s field hockey team at Los Angeles 1984 and first medal of any kind since bronze at the same event in Barcelona eight years later.
It was also the country’s first gold medal in an event other than field hockey, as its athletes claimed a bronze in welterweight wrestling and a bronze in middleweight boxing.
The throw, despite falling just a few metres short of the world record, went down in history as the sixth longest of all time.
The 27-year-old claimed to have won silver at the 2023 World Championships, but he went one better in Paris tonight after a performance few at the Stade will forget.
India’s Neeraj Chopra (left) finished second in the event, while Grenada’s Anderson Peters took bronze.
Silver medallist Chopra finished three and a half metres behind his Pakistani rival.
The throw marked Pakistan’s first Olympic gold since the men’s field hockey team won at Los Angeles in 1984.
Norway’s Andreas Thorkildsen had held the javelin record since the 2008 Games, but his distance of 90.57m was completely demolished.
Surprisingly, the pitcher had faltered in the early stages of a tense final, being called on due to a faulty run that resulted in his opening throw being overturned.
India’s Chopra looked set to overcome his rival and friends with some solid early attempts to apply pressure.
But then Nadeem made a record-breaking throw and the rest of the event was a formality.
