KARACHI, 4th Feb 2023: Pakistan’s talented javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem, who is currently in rehab, on Friday said if he gets fit in time then his main focus will be on the World Athletics Championship which will be held in Budapest, Hungary, from August 19 to 27.
Last year, Nadeem bagged gold medal for Pakistan in the Commonwealth Games and the Islamic Solidarity Games.
“The World Championship is my main target and I will try to achieve top fitness before that event,” Nadeem told ‘The News’ in a detailed chat.
“And if I recover earlier, then I may also play the Asian Championship,” he was quick to add.
Nadeem underwent an elbow surgery in London a couple of months ago, and he has been passing through a rehab program at the PSB Coaching Centre, Lahore.
The rehab time-frame was seven to eight weeks, but Arshad said that it may take more time as the weather is a bit cold.
“You have to go along with such things,” he said. “Now I am doing light training along with the physiotherapy, which is a routine exercise. I don’t feel any such pain in my elbow, but the exact condition will be known only when I begin hard training.”
“After a couple of months training, I will know exactly where my fitness stands,” said Nadeem, who sustained an elbow injury during an international event in Iran a couple of years ago.
Despite the injury, he featured in the Tokyo Olympics, World Athletics Championship, Commonwealth Games and Islamic Solidarity Games and stunned the world with his performances.
Nadeem is on the path of recovery at a stage when he has a load of major events this year, including the 19th Asian Games slated to be held in Hangzhou in September and October.
The javelin thrower won bronze in the previous Asian Games, hosted by Indonesia in 2018.
“Yes, this year is full of events, but currently I am focusing on my full recovery and the way I am progressing I am hopeful I will be able to achieve top fitness before all these major events,” he said.
Nadeem said that he trains in the evening and in the morning he swims at the facility of the Sports Board Punjab (SBP).
What a superb performance from Arshad Nadeem!
He earns Pakistan their first track and field Gold after 60 years 🥇🥇, setting precedence with a new Games record.
Congratulations @NOCPakistan 👏🏾#CommonwealthGames2022 | #B2022 pic.twitter.com/6H5YlKxeLg
— Commonwealth Sport (@thecgf) August 7, 2022
It is pertinent to mention here that Nadeem is in the official camp which has been held by the Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP) with the support of the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) at Lahore. The country’s major sprinter Shajjar Abbas is also training with him.
An AFP senior official told ‘The News’ the other day that it is working on sending Nadeem to Germany, where he will also do his rehab and will train under a German coach to be managed by the Pakistan embassy in Germany.
The AFP wants to train Nadeem in Germany for a long duration, as he also has to appear in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Nadeem broke the 90-metre mark, managing a 90.18 m throw in Birmingham last year, and is capable of snaring an Olympics’ medal in Paris.
Reference Link: https://www.geosuper.tv/latest/22415-arshad-nadeem-focused-on-recovery-before-world-athletics-championship
