Javelin man's sharp rise to fame

CHALLENGES: ATHLETE'S LONG HAUL TO GET PAKISTAN'S FIRST INDIVIDUAL MEDAL IN OVER 30 YEARS

Arshad Nadeem once dreamed of becoming a star cricketer but after switching to athletics, it has been a long haul to capture Pakistan's first individual Olympic medal in more than 30 years.

Since its first Olympics in London in 1948, Pakistan has won three gold, three silver and two bronze medals in field hockey.

The bronzes won by wrestler Mohammad Bashir in Rome in 1g60 and boxer Hussain Shah in Seoul in 1988 were Pakistan's only individual Olympic medals.

But that changed on Thursday for the quiet, humble giant from a farming village near the small city of Mian Channu in Punjab province, when Nadeem threw an Olympic record of 92.97 metres for victory over his friend and close rival, Indian defending champion Neeraj Chopra.

Chopra took silver with 89.45m and Grenada's Anderson Peters bronze with 88.54m.

"When 1 threw the javelin, I got the feel of it leaving my hand and sensed it could be an Olympic record," said Nadeem, 27.

Nadeem, the 2022 Commonwealth champion who was fifth at the Tokyo Olympics and a silver medallist at last year's Budapest world championships, said the result was "very important for Pakistan because I have worked very hard over the years for this"

"My training and hard work have paid off."