GLASGOW: Pakistan’s Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem has qualified for the men’s javelin throw final at the 2026 Commonwealth Games after finishing among the top 12 athletes in Thursday’s qualification round.

Arshad produced a best throw of 78.63 metres, which placed him seventh overall and secured his place in the medal contest. He was unable to improve on the mark in his remaining attempts but advanced based on his overall ranking.

None of the athletes crossed the automatic qualification mark of 84 metres, meaning the 12 best performers progressed to the final on the basis of their qualifying distances.

Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage led the qualification standings with a throw of 82.84 metres. Grenada’s Anderson Peters finished second with 81.29 metres, while South Africa’s Douw Smit placed third after recording 80.64 metres.

England’s Ben East was fourth with 80.38 metres, followed by India’s Neeraj Chopra, who secured fifth position with a best effort of 79.61 metres.

Australia’s Cameron McEntyre finished sixth with 78.91 metres, just ahead of Arshad in the standings.

Pakistan’s second entrant, Muhammad Yasir Sultan, missed out on the final after finishing 14th with a best throw of 74.36 metres.

Arshad Nadeem Set to Defend Commonwealth Title

Arshad will enter the final as the defending Commonwealth Games champion.

He won the gold medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games with a historic throw of 90.18 metres, setting both a national record at the time and a Commonwealth Games record.

The performance also made him the first South Asian javelin thrower to cross the 90-metre mark.

Since then, Arshad has strengthened his position among the world’s leading javelin throwers, most notably by winning Olympic gold in Paris with an Olympic-record throw of 92.97 metres in 2024.

The final is expected to feature another high-profile contest between Arshad and Neeraj Chopra, alongside leading throwers from Grenada, Sri Lanka, South Africa, England and Australia.

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