Arshad set to compete in Diamond League

LAHORE: Pakistan’s premier javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem was scheduled to leave for Paris late Wednesday night to feature in the Diamond League which will be held in France’s capital on July 7.

It will be a testing event for Arshad to know his fitness and form before the Paris Olympics which will begin from July 26. Arshad recently missed an event in Finland due to calf muscle strain which he developed just before flying for Finland.

His management and federation decided to skip the event keeping in view the approaching Olympics in Paris where Arshad will be Pakistan’s sole medal-winning hope. Arshad’s England-based doctor Dr Ali Sher Bajwa also has come to Pakistan and has checked his fitness and is happy with the way Arshad has achieved fitness.

Bajwa was also scheduled to accompany Arshad to Paris for Diamond League. Dr Bajwa will also accompany Arshad during the Paris Olympics. He has been associated with him for the last few years and was also with him during the World Championship in the US in 2022.

Recently a laser surgery on Arshad’s right knee was conducted in England. Arshad’s coach Salman Butt is optimistic about Arshad’s fitness and form. “Yes, he is in good nick now. He is fit. We have done our job and let’s see how it goes,” Butt told ‘The News’.

Arshad also did training at the Punjab Stadium on Wednesday morning in the scorching heat. Arshad, Butt and Dr Bajwa were scheduled to fly out of here for Paris at 3am for the Diamond League. It is an invitational event in which the world’s best athletes compete. It carries decent prize money. It will be after one year that Arshad will compete in any event.

After claiming silver medal in the World Championship in Hungary last year, Arshad had to miss a few events also including the Hangzhou Asian Games due to knee injury. He struggled all the way for achieving fitness and eventually underwent surgery in England which helped him recover.

After featuring in the Diamond League, Arshad will return home on July 8 and will undergo a few days training at Lahore before flying back to Paris on July 24 to take part in the Olympics. Arshad will get around 12 days to acclimatise before his August 6 meet in Olympics. Arshad’s personal best throw is 90.18m which he managed at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games. He finished fifth in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.