Olympic Champion Arshad Nadeem Wins Praise from FIFA President

Pakistan’s Olympic gold medalist Arshad Nadeem met Gianni Infantino, the President of FIFA, in Dubai during the World Sports Summit.

The meeting took place on the sidelines of the summit, where Infantino showed familiarity with Nadeem’s achievements.

During their interaction, Infantino asked Nadeem about his javelin throw distance. “It was a 92-metre throw, and now I want to break that record,” Nadeem told the Fifa president.

Infantino expressed goodwill for the Pakistani athlete and posed for photographs with him. His awareness of Nadeem’s achievements came as a pleasant surprise to the Olympic champion.

Earlier in the week, Nadeem was honored with the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Sports Award in the Global Breakthrough Athlete category at the World Sports Summit.

The award recognized his historic performance at the Paris Olympics, where he won the gold medal with a record-breaking throw of 92.97 metres, setting new Olympic and world records.

Nadeem’s throw surpassed the previous Olympic record held by Norway’s Andreas Thorkildsen for 16 years and marked Pakistan’s first-ever Olympic gold medal in javelin throw.

Speaking after the ceremony, Nadeem described the award as a moment of great pride for himself and the country. He said that international recognition would inspire young athletes and help promote javelin throw in Pakistan.

He added that his next major goals are the 2026 Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games, noting that receiving a prestigious sports award from the Dubai government had given him renewed confidence and motivation.