Arshad Nadeem awarded $897,000 for record throw at Paris Olympics – India TV

Image Source: GETTY IMAGES With Arshad Nadeem.

Pakistan continues to celebrate Arshad Nadeem’s heroic effort at the Paris Olympics, where he won the gold medal in the men’s javelin throw. The athlete has already received a total of 250 million rupees ($897,000) since his return to Pakistan and may receive more in the coming days.

Punjab Chief Minister Mariam Nawaz personally met Arshad at his village in Mian Channu district to present him with a cheque for 100 million rupees ($359,000). Mariam also presented him with a brand new Honda Civic with a special registration number “PAK92” to commemorate Nadeem’s record throw of 92.97m that brought him glory in Paris.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif followed suit and announced that he would hand over Rs 150 million to Nadeem at a grand ceremony in Islamabad for this unprecedented feat.

Interestingly, Nadeem’s big success couldn’t have come at a more auspicious time as Pakistan celebrates its 78th Independence anniversary on Wednesday (August 14). Prime Minister Sharif showered Nadeem with praise and hailed him for making the entire nation proud.

“You have doubled the joy of 250 million Pakistanis because tomorrow we will also celebrate Independence Day,” Sharif said, as quoted by PTI. “Today, every Pakistani is happy and the morale of the entire country is high.”

Pakistan also issued a special postage stamp to honour Nadeem and his amazing performance at the Paris Olympics.

Arshad Nadeem thanks Neeraj Chopra’s mother for blessing

Interestingly, Neeraj’s mother Saroj Devi addressed Arshad as her son and congratulated him on his gold finish in Paris. Reacting to the incident, Arshad expressed gratitude for the love and affection showered on him by Neeraj’s mother.

“A mother is a mother to everyone, so she prays for everyone. I am grateful to Neeraj Chopra’s mother. She is my mother too. She prayed for us and we were just two players from South Asia who came to the world stage,” Pakistani media quoted Nadeem as saying after he returned home.