High officials. Full-proof security and excited fans with flowers and placards. All of them would be waiting for Pakistan’s athlete Arshad Nadeem who turned the nation’s 40-year wait at the Olympics into gold, as he returns home in the wee hours of Sunday.

The 27-year-old javelin thrower from a village near Mian Channu would reach Pakistan tonight via Istanbul, Turkey. Nadeem would land at the Lahore airport where, according to Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, he would be given a “hero’s welcome.”

The Athletics Federation chairman and his coach are accompanying him. His flight is scheduled to land at 1am Pakistan Time.

Prime Minister’s Youth Programme Chairman Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan and the Athletics Federation President would receive Nadeem at the airport, as per reports. Officials from the Punjab Sports Board would also be present.

The Punjab Police band would play national tunes. His convoy would include a police pilot, more than 150 police officers, and the elite force members.

Nadeem made history at the 2024 Paris Games, shattering the javelin throw Olympic record with a stunning throw of 92.97 metres. This momentous achievement has filled the hearts of all Pakistanis with immense pride.

It is a major feat not just for Nadeem, but for the South Asian nation which won their last Olympic medal 32 years ago.

Before Nadeem’s remarkable victory, Pakistan had never won an individual gold medal at the Olympics.

All of Pakistan’s previous three gold medals came in field hockey, with their team winning gold in 1960, 1968 and 1984.

Prior to Thursday, only two Pakistan athletes had won individual medals of any colour - with a wrestling bronze in 1960 and a boxing bronze in 1988.

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Prior to his departure from Paris, Arshad Nadeem was given a grand welcome at the Pakistani embassy in Paris, where he was given a grand welcome. Nadeem stated that his competition was not with Indian athlete Neeraj Chopra, but with himself. “It was Allah’s blessings that gave me this honour,” he said.

He also stressed the need for promoting other sports alongside cricket in Pakistan. Officials at the embassy took photographs to commemorate the occasion.

In a related development, Punjab Assembly member Hina Pervez Butt has submitted a resolution in the assembly to pay tribute to Nadeem.