Neeraj Chopra also said that since Arshad Nadeem is now one of the best javelin throwers, he should be able to attract sponsorships.
Olympic champion and ace javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra has expressed surprise that his Pakistani field rival and friend Arshad Nadeem faced many problems just to get a new javelin.
Nadeem recently spoke about the problems he has been facing since his javelin reached a point where it was damaged. He also asked the national federation and its coach to address the subject before the Paris Olympics.
“When I started in 2015, competing in international events, I got this javelin… for an international athlete who aims to win a medal in the Olympics, you need proper equipment and training facilities,” Nadeem declared a few weeks ago.
Chopra, who shares a strong bond with Nadeem off the field, said that for a champion athlete, access to proper equipment should never be a problem and Nadeem should be provided with all the best facilities without any hindrance.
“It’s hard to believe Nadeem can’t afford a javelin,” Chopra told SAI Media. “Given his credentials, this shouldn’t be a big problem at all. There’s no way Nadeem can’t afford a javelin. He’s a champion and he needs to support his brand. I think he made some money too. But having said that, his government can look at Arshad (Nadeem)’s needs and support him, just like my government is doing. »
Chopra also said that since Nadeem is now an excellent javelin thrower, he should be able to attract sponsorships from javelin manufacturers who would be very keen to provide him with the equipment he needed.
Nadeem, who has been a consistent performer, made headlines with a remarkable throw of 90.18m to set a new javelin throw record at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. With this throw, he was able to win Pakistan’s first gold medal at the CWG in 60 years. However, he has faced many challenges in recent times, including elbow and knee surgeries.
