IN a bid to recalibrate and find his form ahead of the Asian Games, javelin ace Arshad Nadeem has decided to skip the upcoming Diamond League meet in Lausanne this month.
His two performances this season so far have been underwhelming. In the Commonwealth Games, where the likes of Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage, Neeraj Chopra and Yash Vir Singh stole the show, he had experienced a quiet outing. In fact, he had even failed to make the cut for top eight in the finals and he had a best throw of 78.63 metres, which is well below his personal best mark of 92.97 metres, an effort that helped him fetch a historic gold during the 2024 Paris Games. In the event before that in Switzerland, he had a best throw of 78.47 metres.
Arshad's long-time coach, Salman Butt, said that his ward will soon leave for South Africa where he will train for a few weeks under his coach, Terseus Liebenberg, and local trainers. Butt said that he is waiting for visa approval.
Following his training stint in South Africa, Arshad is expected to compete at the World Athletics Ultimate Championships, which is scheduled to take place in Budapest from September 6 to 14.
The Lausanne Diamond League is scheduled to begin on August 21 where some of names in the sport like Chopra, Julian Weber and Anderson Peters are taking part.