Arshad in awe of ‘inspiring’ athletes

Javelin thrower says Special Olympians have made nation proud with medal haul, dedication

KARACHI:

The Special Olympics Pakistan (SOP) athletes wrapped up the World Games in Berlin on Sunday with a resounding success as they grabbed 28 medals.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Commonwealth Games record holder and Olympian Arshad Nadeem congratulated the athletes and called them ‘inspiring’.

The SOP fielded 87 athletes in the competition, including 33 females and 54 males in 11 different sports disciplines. They were among 7000 athletes from 176 countries who also took part in the closing ceremony on June 25 at Brandenburg Gate.

The youngsters made the country proud as they clinched 10 gold, nine silver, and nine bronze medals.

The cyclists won the most gold medals, with four, while three came in powerlifting, two in track and field, and one in badminton.

In the nine exciting days at the Games, Pakistani athletes demonstrated an unbreakable spirit and resilience.

The World Games is a global event for people with intellectual disabilities, promoting inclusion and empowerment through sports. The SOP also athletes made their contribution count, inspiring the country with their performances and hard work.

So much so that when Nadeem found out that one of the medal winners Umair Kayani called him his hero after winning the gold medal, the Islamic Games gold medallist said he was inspired and touched by the Special Olympian’s performance and comments.

“I can’t believe he said that,” Nadeem, 26, told The Express Tribune. “I feel so honoured to be named by a hero like Umair. The special Olympians are our heroes, undoubtedly.

“I am so inspired to do even better myself because I never thought that my performances would reach heroes like Umair and other Special Olympians.

“I am so proud of them for winning the medals, for making us all proud of them. I can only say that I am rooting for them to do better. Knowing this now makes me want to work harder.”

The 25-year-old Kayani took the gold medal with a throw of 38.81m, while Umaima Iftikhar also got a silver medal in the women’s event, in which she threw her spear at 10.47.

The athlete from Wah-Cannt, Kayani, has been very skilled in the shot put and javelin throw, according to his coach Irfan Anwar and he had been preparing to participate in the Berlin Games for the last two years.

“Arshad Nadeem has been my idol,” Kayani had said after his gold medal-winning performance. “I want to make my name just like Arshad did.”

Pakistan's first two gold medals were secured by powerlifter Saifullah Solangi, who successfully lifted 115kg in the deadlift event and 90kg in the back squat event. His other medals included one silver and one bronze.

The next achiever was Usman Qamar, who won his gold medal in the 5km road race cycling event. He clocked seven minutes and 21.59 seconds to get the gold, with his coach Maham Tariq revealing that Usman had almost missed out on the Games as his visa only came one day before the contingent was scheduled to leave for Berlin.

Usman made his debut at the Games and showed that his hard work had paid off since he had been cycling from 2016 onwards. He also went on to win the 2km time-trial event.

Kayani won his gold medal next, whereas Zainab Ali Raza brought in more good news with her stellar performance and a gold medal in the 2km cycling event.

In the badminton women's unified doubles event, Faiza Nasir and Naheen Khan took the gold medal to add to the medal tally, whereas sprinter Muhammad Luqman brought the gold medal in the 100m men’s athletics event.

Powerlifter Habibullah also came first in the 83kg event, taking gold in the deadlift, and silver medals in the squat, benchpress, and combined weight categories.

Last but not least, Muhammad Safeer won the gold medal in the cycling 10km time-trial event to round up the 10 gold medals.

Pakistan also won medals in hockey, futsal, tennis, and bocce, among other sports.

The next Special Olympics World Games will take place in Perth, whereas the next Winter Olympics World Games will be hosted by Italy in 2025.