Athletics in Pakistan is overseen by the Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP) which organizes athletic tournaments in Pakistan. Athletics is an exclusive collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running, and race walking.
History
[edit]Many Pakistani athletes have excelled in various events including the Olympic Games, the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games among others.[1]
The 1950s and 1960s are often regarded as the Golden Age of Pakistani athletics, with Abdul Khaliq, Ghulam Raziq, Mubarak Shah, Muhammad Iqbal, Muhammad Nawaz, Jalal Khan, Allah Ditta and Muhammad Ramzan Ali achieving various milestones.[1] In the early decades, Pakistanis held many Asian records including the Asian 100 m and 200 m record held by Abdul Khaliq.[1]
Other notable athletes include Mirza Khan, Ghulam Abbas, Nadir Khan, Aqarab Abbas, Muhammad Sharif Butt, Khwaja Muhammad Aslam, among others, who got prominence at either Asian or International levels, winning gold medals for Pakistan.[2] Pakistani female athletes have also represented Pakistan at the international level, such as Shabana Akhtar, who was the first Pakistani female athlete to participate at the Olympics. International events such as the Lahore Marathon take place in the country.
![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/54/Arshad_Nadeem_Budapest_2023_%28cropped%29.jpg/220px-Arshad_Nadeem_Budapest_2023_%28cropped%29.jpg)
In recent times, Arshad Nadeem is the reigning Olympic champion in Men's javelin throw with an Olympic record throw of 92.97 metres (305.0 ft) at the 2024 Summer Olympics.[3] He also created a Commonwealth Games record with a throw of 90.18 m and became the first ever athlete from South Asia to breach the 90m mark.[4]
National Championship
[edit]National Athletics Championships is held annually by the Athletics Federation of Pakistan.[5]
Major international medallists
[edit]Competition | Athlete | Medal | Event | Year |
---|---|---|---|---|
Olympic Games | Arshad Nadeem | ![]() |
Javelin throw | 2024 |
World Championships | Arshad Nadeem | ![]() |
Javelin throw | 2023 |
Commonwealth Games | ||||
Arshad Nadeem | ![]() |
Javelin throw | 2022 | |
Muhammad Nawaz | ![]() |
Javelin throw | 1966 | |
Muhammad Iqbal | ![]() |
Hammer throw | 1966 | |
Ghulam Raziq | ![]() |
120 yards hurdles | 1966 | |
Ghulam Raziq | ![]() |
120 yards hurdles | 1962 | |
Jalal Khan | ![]() |
Javelin throw | 1958 | |
Muhammad Iqbal | ![]() |
Hammer throw | 1958 | |
Muhammad Ramzan Ali | ![]() |
Long jump | 1958 | |
Ghulam Raziq | ![]() |
120 yards hurdles | 1958 | |
Muhammad Iqbal | ![]() |
Hammer throw | 1954 | |
Muhammad Nawaz | ![]() |
Javelin throw | 1954 | |
Jalal Khan | ![]() |
Javelin throw | 1954 |
Notable performance at Summer Olympics
[edit]Athlete(s) | Event | Games | Result |
---|---|---|---|
Arshad Nadeem | Men's Javelin Throw | 2024 Paris | 1st place ![]() |
Arshad Nadeem | Men's Javelin Throw | 2020 Tokyo | Final (5th place - 84.62m) |
Bashir Ahmed, Mohammad Sadaqat, Mohammad Afzal, Muhammad Fayyaz | Men's 4 × 400 metres relay | 1988 Seoul | Semi-Final |
Abdul Malik, Muhammad Ramzan Ali, Ghulam Raziq, Abdul Khaliq |
Men's 4 x 100 metres relay | 1960 Rome | Semi-Final |
Ghulam Raziq | Men's 110 metres hurdles | 1960 Rome | 4th in Semi-Final heat |
Abdul Aziz, Muhammad Sharif Butt, Abdul Khaliq, Ghulam Raziq |
Men's 4 x 100 metres relay | 1956 Melbourne | Semi-Final |
Ghulam Raziq | Men's 110 metres hurdles | 1956 Melbourne | Semi-Final |
Abdul Khaliq | Men's 200 metres | 1956 Melbourne | 4th in Semi-Final heat – Stands in top seven athletes |
Abdul Khaliq | Men's 100 metres | 1956 Melbourne | 4th in Semi-Final heat |
Muhammad Aslam, Abdul Aziz, Muhammad Shariff Butt, Muhammad Fazil |
Men's 4 x 100 metres relay | 1952 Helsinki | Semi-Final |
Total medals won by Pakistani athletes in major tournaments
[edit]Competition | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|
Olympics | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
World Championships | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Commonwealth Games | 3 | 3 | 6 | 12 |
Asian Games | 14 | 13 | 13 | 40 |
Asian Championships | 2 | 3 | 3 | 8 |
Asian Indoor Championships | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Asian Cross Country Championships | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Total | 20 | 22 | 24 | 66 |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c "The Golden Age of Pakistani Athletics: The 50s and the 60s | Sports | thenews.com.pk". thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 2024-08-09.
- ^ Zuberi, Anwar (2006-11-16). "Pakistan's golden past in athletics: Asian Games in perspective". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2024-08-09.
- ^ Topping, Alexandra (2024-08-08). "Arshad Nadeem throws his way into history for Pakistan with javelin gold". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-08-09.
- ^ Desk, The Bridge (2022-08-08). "Watch: Arshad Nadeem becomes first South Asian to breach 90m mark". thebridge.in. Archived from the original on August 8, 2022. Retrieved August 7, 2022.
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