Pakistan last won an Olympics medal before Arshad Nadeem was born. Now, the 24-year-old is Pakistan's last and only hope at the Tokyo Olympics 2020.
Nadeem will be the centre of attraction for millions of Pakistanis as the athlete searches for the country's first Olympics medal since 1992.
Nadeem, a gold medalist at the 2019 South Asian Games, is one of the 12 contestants appearing in the final of the men's javelin throw event today (Saturday), with eyes set on whether Pakistan can end its 29-year Olympics medal drought.
The country is now united in wishing him the best of luck for the final.
In the final, each thrower will be entitled to three chances in round one to record their best distance. At the end of the first round, the four at the bottom will be eliminated while the rest of them will get three more throws.
The athlete from Mian Chunnu, Khanewal, kept Pakistan’s hopes alive on Wednesday when he qualified for the final of the event with a throw of 85.16 metres – third-best after India’s Neeraj Chopra (86.65m) and world leader Germany's Johannes Vetter (85.64m).
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Before August 4, Nadeem was only known to those who have a flair for sports, but for the general public, he has now emerged as an unlikely hero. On mainstream and social media, everyone, from cricket stars to politicians, joined to wish him luck.
“My goal is to get the medal… I want to return home with my head held high. I want to make Pakistan proud. I just need to do the best I am capable of here in Tokyo," said Nadeem ahead of the final.
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Pakistan last won an Olympics medal when the national hockey team won bronze at the 1992 Barcelona Games. In total Pakistan, has 10 Olympics medals including three gold. Eight of them have been won by the Pakistan's Men's Field Hockey team between 1956 and 1992.
The country has only two individual Olympics medals – both bronze; one in wrestling in Rome 1960 and another in the boxing event in Seoul 1988.