Islamabad, Aug 13: Chief Minister of Punjab Maryam Nawaz paid Olympic gold medallist Arshad Nadeem a visit on Tuesday in his hometown of Mian Channu, where she gave him a cheque for Rs. 100 million, with his incredible 92.97-meter throw, Arshad not only set a record in the Games but also won Pakistan’s first Olympic gold in forty years last week in Paris.
Arshad’s Olympic victory, Pakistan won its first-ever gold medal in individual competition, its first-ever track and field medal, and the second time that a South Asian has placed second in the sport. Since then, the country has celebrated the athlete’s return to his hometown of Mian Channu, where he was greeted like a hero by the local authorities, who also announced that he would be receiving the Hilal-i-Imtiaz award and financial awards of over Rs155 million.
Today, CM Maryam traveled to Mian Channu by helicopter to meet Arshad at his residence. There, the javelin star and his family welcomed her.The chief minister spoke with Arshad’s mother, Razia Parveen, and congratulated them both.
A press statement states that Maryam gave Arshad the Rs. 100 million check that she had earlier declared along with a Honda Civic automobile that was specially registered PAK-92.97 to honor the athlete’s winning throw.
The chief minister also praised Salman Iqbal Butt, Arshad’s coach, for the training he gave the javelin superstar by giving him a cheque for Rs. 5 million. According to Maryam, “Arshad Nadeem has brought unprecedented happiness to the nation,” the press statement said.
The chief minister was attended by senior Punjab minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, provincial sports minister Faisal Ayub Khokhar, special assistant to chief minister Zeeshan Malik, MPA Sania Ashiq, former MPA Aamir Hayat Hiraj, and former MNA Pir Aslam Bodla.
On the occasion were the Punjab chief secretary, the sports secretary, the assistant inspector-general of police (South), the local commissioner and his deputy, and others. Maryam wrote on X, “The heights that parents’ prayers take a person to!” along with a photo of herself sitting with Arshad’s mother.
In a different post, the chief minister congratulated Arshad Nadeem and shared images of herself giving him a medal. Arshad and his family would receive Umrah packages from the Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP), according to a report by the Associated Press of Pakistan. It said that after the festivities were over, Arshad would go for Umrah with his wife, kids, and parents.
