A javelin throw of 89.45 metres would usually be enough to fetch the top spot. On Thursday at the Stade de France, defending Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra did just that. But it wasn’t enough for gold.
A collective gasp of disbelief rent the air as Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem threw his spear for his second attempt — the biggest of his life. As the javelin landed covering a distance of 92.97 metres, sailing past the OR boxes in the infield, the stadium could not believe what they had just seen.
It was an Olympic Games record, bettering the previous mark of 90.57 set by Andreas Thorkildsen of Norway in the 2008 Beijing Games. This was Nadeem’s second of the six attempts after a foul in the first.
By the time he had his last, it was confirmed that Nadeem would be Pakistan’s first medallist since the Barcelona Olympic Games. And that too a gold. His last throw also was more than the previous “OR”. It was 91.79.
Spurred on by his friend’s show, Neeraj recovered brilliantly from a faulty first attempt and had a super 89.45m throw, for the second spot. A gold in Tokyo, silver in Paris. What a champion athlete. His other five throws were adjudged fouls.
Anderson Peters was third with a best throw of 88.54.
Last year’s World Championships in Budapest saw a subcontinent 1-2 with Neeraj finishing first. In Paris, on the biggest stage, it was Nadeem’s turn. The two javelin throwers from the subcontinent are having a ball.
“We thought India versus Pakistan rivalry is only in cricket. Now in javelin too!” a South African journalist was happily surprised.
Pakistan sent just seven athletes to Paris. Six of them did not qualify for the finals. One did and got them a gold. After his last throw, Nadeem knelt down and thanked the Almighty.
There were hugs galore for Nadeem from his peers.
The mood before the javelin final was electric. Atreyee Basu Mukherjee, who works at an international bank here, was at the stadium hours before the javelin event accompanied by her father Bhaskar Basu, a resident of Tollygunge.
“The vibes are amazing. So many Indians are at the stadium just to watch Neeraj,” Atreyee said.
Arshad might have spoiled the Indians’ mood, but Neeraj’s silver, the country’s first
in these Games, was not a mean achievement.
