Athletics in Pakistan

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

Many Pakistani athletes have excelled in various global events including the Olympic Games, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and World Athletics Championships.^[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, Abdul Malik, Mehboob Ali and Liaquat Ali who got prominence at either Asian or International levels, winning gold medals for Pakistan.^[2] Female athletes have also represented Pakistan at the international level, including Shabana Akhtar, who was the first Pakistani female athlete to participate at the Olympics. Among Pakistan's notable women athletes are Naseem Hameed, Najma Parveen, Sadaf Siddiqui and Sumaira Zahoor.

Pakistan has hosted several major international athletics events including the 1989 and 2004 South Asian Games. International events such as the Lahore Marathon also take place in the country.

Arshad Nadeem, javelin thrower and Pakistan's first Olympic Gold medallist in athletics.

In recent times, Arshad Nadeem is the reigning Olympic champion in Men's javelin throw with an Asian and Olympic record throw of 92.97 metres (305.0 ft) at the 2024 Summer Olympics.^[3]. He became the first Pakistani to qualify for the finals of any track and field event at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships.

In 2023, he became the first Pakistani athlete to win a medal at the World Athletics Championships, a silver. In 2022, 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

National Athletics Championships is held annually by the Athletics Federation of Pakistan.^[5]

Major international medallists

Competition	Athlete	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

Athlete(s)	Event	Games	Result
Arshad Nadeem	Men's Javelin Throw	2024 Paris	1st place (92.97m) OR
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

Competition	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Olympics	1	0	0	1
Paralympics	1	1	2	4
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	21	23	26	70

References

^ ^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. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
^ "AFP to conduct two national c'ships in Sept, Oct: Sahi". 15 July 2021.

This article about sports in Pakistan is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[:9-1] "The Golden Age of Pakistani Athletics: The 50s and the 60s | Sports | thenews.com.pk". thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 2024-08-09.

[2] Zuberi, Anwar (2006-11-16). "Pakistan's golden past in athletics: Asian Games in perspective". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2024-08-09.

[3] 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.

[90m_mark3-4] 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. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)

[5] "AFP to conduct two national c'ships in Sept, Oct: Sahi". 15 July 2021.

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