Author: Subhi Saxena Date: 09/08/24
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Arshad Nadeem, a Pakistani Javelin thrower who claimed the Paris Olympics 2024 Gold Medal by showcasing his record-breaking performance has had his fair share of struggle to become an athlete. Here is his journey decoded.
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Arshad Nadeem is the son of a construction worker and has lived in difficult situations, his father used to be the only breadwinner of his family. They used to eat meat once a year only on Eid-ul-Adha.
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Nadeem is the third eldest among the seven siblings and has struggled to get the facilities to play sports.
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When Arshad was young he switched many sports from cricket to badminton. His passion was cricket so he played district-level Tape Ball Cricket.
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His Villagers and Relatives used to donate money to help him travel to different cities for the game. His uncle made sure to provide him good diet like Ghee and milk.
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Arshad Nadeem has struggled with Knee, Elbow and back problems because of the game and didn't get any support from the government.
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When the Pakistani Athlete was injured, he used to watch Neeraj Chopra's videos to learn from him and study the techniques.
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In January 2024, Arshad did not have 85000 rupees to buy a new Javeline for himself. That's when Neeraj Chopra took to his social media and demanded the facilities for him.
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Even with the lack of facilities, Nadeem performed well at the international level. He has won Olympics and Commonwealth Games gold medals and he's won a silver in the World Championships as well.
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