A single 92.97 metre javelin throw on a balmy summer evening in Paris was all it took to rouse Pakistan’s sporting glory from the deep slumber it had fallen into. The country was thirsting for an end to its Olympic medal drought and Arshad Nadeem went above and beyond the call of duty to deliver what was so desperately lacking: a sense of accomplishment, unity through sports, and renewed hope.

So earth-shattering was his performance that even his coach, Salman Butt, was surprised by what his protégé had just done, telling Dawn a day later that it was “unbelievable.” The crowd at the Stade de France went wild as Nadeem made Pakistani Olympic history and then ran straight to Butt to celebrate the biggest achievement of their sporting journey yet, embracing each other as the import of the moment set in.

But that’s just the thing. This gold medal and Olympic record belong to them and them alone. In quintessential Nadeem fashion, he generously gifted his medal to the nation as an early Independence Day present. He had taken it upon himself years ago to make the nation proud and give back to his community. However, his feat is not a product of the good sports governance and top-notch facilities that several politicians now claim to have provided him with.

His extraordinary talent, dedication and Butt’s deep knowledge about the sport are what led to this historic performance – and the blessings of his family and community in Mian Channu. This is what carried him to victory in Paris.

The international media was quick to report his win, digging up previous interviews with him and attributing his success to his parents while acknowledging the dearth of facilities he faced. So heightened was the insecurity of various sports bodies at such reports that they began issuing clarifications soon after. The Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) claimed to have spent Rs 23 million on Nadeem over the past five years in the form of prize money and expenses for his knee surgery.

By all means, a pat on the back can be given to governing institutions for doing what is expected of them, but the ‘dungeon of a gym’ where Nadeem trained speaks more about the on-ground realities than the hollow claims made by politicians that they gave him everything.

Perhaps the most laudable decision by Pakistan’s sporting bodies was to pair Butt with Nadeem after his fifth-place finish at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Officially, Butt became Nadeem’s coach, but he became his “roohani baap,” his mentor and confidant, taking Nadeem to new heights.

Butt’s expertise comes from an extensive four-year Master’s degree encompassing kinesiology, anatomy, physiology, sports science, mechanics of movement and nutrition, and Nadeem’s 92.97 metre throw was a work of art, fine-tuned by Butt overseeing his every muscle movement, speed and agility. It was this degree of perfection that earned Butt the esteemed directorship of the Asian Athletics Association in 2018. Apart from being the coach to the finest javelin thrower in the world, Butt also manages area development centres in Jakarta, Cairo and Bangkok for World Athletics.

Before heading off to Paris, Nadeem told Dawn that every athlete would go far if they had a coach like Butt, who “gives his 100 percent focus while I’m training, standing right on my head practically.”

The recipe for success has been shared by the champion himself. Pakistan needs to invest in more Salman Butts, who tirelessly reiterates the need for elite training centres. “If we want to compete in the international arena, we must develop accordingly,” he told Dawn earlier this summer.

And none of this is a big ask. The government has the budget; it just needs to invest the money in the right place at the right time. The focus must be on human development rather than building physical infrastructure, which is often done at great speed with little planning by permanent seat warmers occupying positions of power in sporting institutions with little to no sports background.

To be clear, there will never be another Arshad Nadeem in Pakistan. Only Arshad Nadeem can be Arshad Nadeem. But there will be others like him, and that is what the government needs to invest in – the future of sporting excellence. The crores of rupees worth of prize money that has poured in for Nadeem is an excellent acknowledgement of his decade of success for Pakistan. But it is time to go beyond performative gestures and invest that kind of money in actual development.

After 32 years, Arshad Nadeem has opened the floodgates. The government must be wise not to shut them down again. 

Anushe Engineer is a journalist at Dawn, covering sports, gender and human rights.