After facing criticism on social media for failing to defend his Commonwealth Games title, Pakistan’s Olympic gold medalist and world-renowned javelin thrower, Arshad Nadeem, has broken his silence and explained the reasons behind his performance.
Arshad Nadeem apologised to the nation for not meeting expectations, saying that every athlete experiences both good and bad days in sport and that no athlete deliberately performs poorly. He explained that although he had trained in Pakistan’s hot weather, the unusually cold conditions and strong winds during the competition in Glasgow caused his body to stiffen. As a result, he was unable to execute his run-up properly or produce his best throw, expressing this while talking to media persons.
Nadeem added that in the past, he had often committed fouls while attempting a full-speed run-up, but this time the issue was not his fitness; it was the weather. “My preparation was complete, but my body did not cooperate because of the cold,” he said.
The Olympic champion acknowledged that the people of Pakistan had expected him to win the gold medal and admitted that he was unable to fulfil those expectations on this occasion. However, he stressed that he had given his best and left no stone unturned. He added that he accepts the will of Allah Almighty, saying that whatever pleases Allah is what ultimately happens.
Nadeem said that both success and failure are part of sport and that this is what makes competition beautiful. He emphasised that he is not discouraged by this setback and will work even harder to prepare for future events. His immediate focus is now on the World Athletics Championships, scheduled to take place in Budapest, Hungary, from September 11 to 13, followed by the Asian Games later in September, where he hopes to deliver a stronger performance.
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