ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s star athlete Arshad Nadeem made history on Thursday by bagging an Olympic gold medal in Paris at the men’s javelin throw competition, sending the light spear two times over the 90-meter mark to hand Pakistan its first Olympic medal since 1992.
Nadeem’s first throw was disqualified but it was his second one that sent the javelin at a massive distance of 92.97 meters and made him the first Pakistani athlete to bag a medal in track and field.
India’s Neeraj Chopra, the defending Olympic champion, threw the second-best throw at 89.45 meters to claim silver while Grenadian Anderson Peters claimed bronze with an 88.54-meter throw.
“Bravo Arshad, history made!” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote on social media platform X. “You’ve made the whole nation proud young man.”
In a separate statement, Pakistan’s military services chiefs and chairman joint chiefs of staff committee congratulated Nadeem on the historic feat.
“This remarkable achievement is a testament to Arshad Nadeem’s unwavering dedication, unrelenting perseverance, and exemplary hard work, serving as a beacon of inspiration for the entire nation,” Pakistan army’s media wing said.
“His triumph is a resounding affirmation of Pakistani talent and determination, showcasing the country’s potential to excel on the global stage.”
Speaking to reporters, Nadeem’s emotional mother said her son had made the entire country proud.
“He has made Pakistan proud and has held the country’s head high,” she said.
Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab congratulated Nadeem, announcing a Rs5,00,00,000 [$179,404] cash award for the athlete.
“I announce a sports academy in Karachi in honor of Arshad Nadeem,” Wahab said. “Arshad Nadeem is our nation’s hero and we are proud of our heroes.”
Pakistan at the Olympics
Pakistan has won only 10 medals since the 1948 edition, with only two medals won by individual athletes. After gaining independence in 1947, the South Asian country won its first medal in 1956 in Melbourne when it won silver in field hockey, Pakistan’s national sport.
Pakistan bagged gold in hockey in 1960 in Rome and bagged a bronze in the same competition when Mohammad Bashir clinched the medal in the men’s 73kg wrestling category.
From 1964 to 1984, Pakistan bagged two gold, two silver and one bronze medals, all in field hockey. Pakistan’s Hussain Shah bagged bronze in the men’s middleweight category in Seoul Olympics in 1988.
The South Asian country won its last medal in 1992 in Barcelona, when the field hockey team bagged bronze.
Nadeem is a 10-time international medalist and five-time gold medalist who came fifth at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The Pakistani star athlete won silver at the World Championships last year and gold at the Commonwealth Games in 2022 with a massive 90.18-meter distance throw.
Nadeem, who comes from humble beginnings from Khanewal in Pakistan, is one of nine children of a daily wage laborer who showed great versatility as an athlete from a young age while dabbling in all kinds of sports at school.
Though the family lacked the financial means to encourage Nadeem’s enthusiasm for sports, his spirit earned him the support he needed, with his elder brothers working to help him build a career in sports, the family told Arab News in an interview in 2021.
How Saudi football scored in the runup to 2026 FIFA World Cup
Saudi Pro League asserted global dominance with star-studded lineups and record-breaking performances from Asia’s elite top-tier clubs
Domestic leagues reached new heights, yet the national team faces mounting pressure ahead of a high-stakes global tournament
Updated 03 January 2026
Ali Khaled
DUBAI: FIFA President Gianni Infantino seemed full of optimism on Dec. 21 when he said Saudi Arabia had become a major hub on the global football stage and that the Saudi Pro League was on track to become one of the top three in the world.
With players like Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema and a nation crazy about the great game, this endorsement perhaps comes as little surprise.
Infantino also predicted a successful World Cup in 2034 when the tournament will be hosted by Saudi Arabia. With infrastructure being built and upgraded, the Expo 2030 venue under construction, and reforms underway, the World Cup seems destined to be a success.
At the 2026 World Cup, Saudi Arabia will face Uruguay, European champions Spain, and Cape Verde in their three Group H matches, taking place in Miami, Atlanta, and Houston respectively. (Reuters/File)
The FIFA boss also praised the progress made not only at the senior national team level and across youth categories, but also in the women’s game, thanks to the backing of football authorities in recent years.
While this paints a positive picture of the game in the Kingdom, it follows the national team’s 1-0 loss to Jordan in the semi-finals of the 2025 Arab Cup. Many supporters will need far more convincing of the team’s prospects going into the New Year.
Although the return of Herve Renard as coach of the Green Falcons following Roberto Mancini’s disappointing stint has resulted in a second consecutive World Cup qualification (and seventh overall), failure to win the Arab Cup in Qatar and some less than inspiring performances means the jury is still out on the Frenchman.
At the 2026 World Cup, Saudi Arabia will face Uruguay, European champions Spain, and Cape Verde in their three Group H matches, taking place in Miami, Atlanta, and Houston respectively.
Saudi fans sharing Infantino’s positive outlook will hope Renard’s men can emulate the historic win over Argentina on that memorable night at Lusail Stadium in 2022. But that is far easier said than done, and many remain unconvinced.
Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after scoring a goal during the Saudi Pro League. (AFP/File)
For a start, just as Poland and Mexico were alerted to Saudi Arabia’s potential following that humbling of Lionel Messi and co in Qatar, their opponents in the US will likewise be on their guard this time around.
Worryingly for Saudi fans, the team has rarely, if at all, hit the same highs since Saleh Al-Shehri’s equalizer and Salem Al-Dawsari’s stunning strike brought about arguably the most famous win in the Green Falcons’ history.
The 2023 AFC Asian Cup, played in early 2024 and only months after Mancini’s arrival, saw Saudi Arabia eliminated by South Korea on penalties in the round of 16.
World Cup qualification was eventually secured but not before the team needed to negotiate a fourth round group that included Iraq and Indonesia in October.
The semi-final exit at the Arab Cups prompted rumors — immediately denied by the Saudi Arabian Football Federation — that Renard’s job was under threat. Still, it was hardly a ringing endorsement of the way things had turned out on his second stint as national team coach.
Al-Ahli's Roberto Firmino lifts the trophy as he celebrates with teammates after winning the Asian Champions League. (Reuters/File)
Outspoken Saudi-based football pundit Battal Algoos has been scathing in his criticism of Renard and his employers, and in particular of the excuses for the Arab Cup disappointment.
“It seems to be a contagion that has affected the Saudi camp,” he said on the football show “Filmarma” on Al Arabiya.
“Everyone justifies (their position) through others’ failures. We brought you to win a championship, not to say ‘those before me didn’t win championships, I’m no worse than them’.
“It seems to be contagious, from (SAFF President) Yasser Al-Misehal to Renard. Or their thinking is one and the same.”
Paul Williams, Australian journalist and founder and presenter of “The Asian Game” podcast, was at Lusail Stadium the day Saudi Arabia beat the eventual world champions, but believes urgent fixes are needed by Renard this time round.
New Murabba Stadium. (Supplied)
“There are a multitude of areas that Saudi Arabia need to improve,” he told Arab News. “The obvious is in the final third, where there are still issues finding a reliable avenue to goal, an issue that blighted most of their qualification campaign.
“But they also haven’t yet found a capable replacement in midfield for Salman Al-Faraj, and the entire narrative around Saudi football has changed since before 2022.
“There has always been pressure and expectation from the fans, but that is even more intense now and it feels like that sits heavily on the squad, who are yet to prove they are capable of delivering under that burden of expectation.”
The team’s main concern remains, as it was four years ago in Qatar, its lack of fire power up front and an over-reliance on Al-Dawsari for goals and inspiration. In that sense, at least the 34-year-old talisman can still be relied on.
The Al-Hilal and Saudi Arabia captain provided one of the highlights of 2025 when he was named AFC Player of the Year at the awards ceremony in Riyadh. Al-Dawsari is the only Saudi to have won the Asian award twice.
On an individual level, he enjoyed a stellar 2024-25 season with his club, although Al-Hilal lost out on the Saudi Pro League title to a Benzema-inspired Al-Ittihad.
Al-Dawsari and Al-Hilal came back strongly in the summer to reach the quarter-finals of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup in the US, along the way drawing 1-1 with Real Madrid in the group stage and brilliantly beating Manchester City 4-3 in the round of 16.
Domestically, however, it is their local rivals that have stolen all the headlines, with their lead at the top of the SPL delighting millions of fans around the world and perhaps in the process reinforcing Infantino’s estimation of the league.
Al-Nassr, now managed by former Al-Hilal boss Jorge Jesus and inspired by the relentlessly enduring Ronaldo, look near invincible at the top of the table, having won all nine matches during this campaign.
The coronation that their fans and the Portuguese legend’s army of global followers had envisioned since he landed in Riyadh three years ago is looking increasingly likely to happen in May. Their end of year report card is glowing 9 out of 10.
Cristiano Ronaldo scores a goal in the Saudi Pro League. (Reuters/File)
Al-Hilal, the self-styled Real Madrid of Asia, can never be counted out however, and the title race in 2026 could be one of the most exciting and close in recent years.
Reigning champions Al-Ittihad, on the other hand, have put up a dismal defense of their title resulting in the sacking of Laurent Blanc, who was succeeded by Sergio Conceicao. Their card will read “must do better.”
Al-Ahli provided further evidence of the SPL’s continental dominance by claiming the 2025 AFC Champions League Elite after beating Japan’s Kawasaki Frontale 2-0 in Jeddah last May.
Elsewhere, Aramco-owned Al-Qadsiah and newly promoted NEOM provide intriguing plot lines as they sit in fifth and eighth respectively, while Al-Taawoun continue to punch above their weight in third.
One of the standout personalities of the season has been US investor Ben Harburg who — through Harburg Group — acquired 100 percent of Al-Kholood in July, making it the first Saudi club wholly owned by a foreign entity. The purchase opens up new possibilities for the SPL.
Al-Hilal's Salem Al-Dawsari poses with the trophy and the President of the Asian Football Confederation Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa after winning the AFC Player of the Year. (Reuters/File)
There is little debate now that the SPL is the most powerful and entertaining in Asia and could in future years, if Infantino is right, become one of the world’s best. The national team’s standing however, until the 2026 World Cup at least, remains up in the air.
