It’s confirmed that there will be no face-off between India’s golden boy Neeraj Chopra and Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, who stunned the world with his monstrous 92.97-metre throw at the Paris Olympics 2024, winning the gold medal. On Thursday, Nadeem announced that he would not be participating in Neeraj’s event, as the date clashes with his training schedule for the Asian Athletics Championships, which will be held from 27 to 31 May.
The inaugural javelin throw meet was initially scheduled in Panchkula on May 24, but now, the competition is set to take place in Bengaluru.
"I have declined the invitation as my schedule was finalised a year earlier, and I am going to attend an Asian meet in South Korea from May 27," Arshad was quoted as saying by Telecom Asia Sport.
However, the timing of the withdrawal is being seen as notable, as it comes just two days after the horrific Pahalgam terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir, which claimed the lives of 28 civilians. This has led many to believe that Arshad’s decision may have been influenced by the current anti-Pakistan sentiment prevailing in India.