ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has directed for conferment of Hilal-e-Imtiaz upon athlete Arshad Nadeem for record performance in Paris Olympics 2024, ARY News reported.
“The President will confer the civil award upon Arshad Nadeem during a special ceremony to be held in recognition of his prominent performance in sports. The President will confer the civil award under Article 259 (2) of the Constitution,” President Secretariat Press Wing said in a press release, on Saturday.
Under the constitutional provision, the president can confer Pakistani citizens with civil awards in recognition of their meritorious services in different fields of life.
Upon the President’s directive, a letter had been dispatched by the Aiwan-e-Sadr to the Cabinet Division, in this regard.
President Zardari said that Arshad Nadeem, with his brilliant performance, had made the nation proud in the field of sports.
Nadeem’s marvelous achievement at the international level brought laurels to the nation. He had raised the name of country in athletics, said the contents of the letter, shared by President Secretariat Press Wing with media.
Grand welcome
The gold medalist will arrive in Lahore at 1 am, on Sunday, travelling via Istanbul. He will be accompanied by the Chairman of South Asian Athletics, Muhammad Akram Sahi.
Upon his return to homeland, a grand reception is planned for the champion, with his coach, Salman Butt, also returning alongside him.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will receive Pakistan’s javelin thrower Olympic gold medalist Arshad Nadeem at Lahore airport, his coordinator Rana Mashood confirmed.
Olympic gold medal
Arshad Nadeem became the first-ever individual gold medalist in the Olympics for Pakistan.
In the first stage, the star javelin player failed to make a mark in his first attempt, however, he made a remarkable recovery with 92.97m in his second attempt, a new Olympic record.
He surpassed Norway’s Andreas Thorkildsen, who threw farthest at 90.57 during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Following his triumph at the Paris Olympics 2024, Punjab government announced Rs100 million for Arshad.
Sindh government had also announced a Rs50 million reward for Pakistan’s star athlete Arshad Nadeem.
