The medical clearance paves the way for an eagerly anticipated battle at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, starting September 13, where Nadeem is expected to challenge India’s reigning world champion, Neeraj Chopra.

Dr Abbas, speaking to a media channel, affirmed his satisfaction with Nadeem’s rehab progress:

“Arshad has fully recovered… I am sure he will be right up there to compete with Neeraj and all others who will be lined up for the javelin event.”

He added, “I have seen him before, so I am confident that he will be able to achieve better results than he did in Paris,” referring to Nadeem’s record-breaking Olympic gold throw of 92.97 m at the 2024 Paris Games.

Their rivalry—one of the most thrilling in athletics—goes back to the 2023 World Championship in Budapest, where Chopra narrowly beat Nadeem by just 0.35 m en route to gold, and Arshad secured silver with a throw of 87.82 m.

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Now, with Nadeem back in peak form, attention turns toward the javelin qualifiers on September 17 and the final on September 18, hosted at Tokyo’s Japan National Stadium, the same venue where Chopra clinched Olympic gold at Tokyo 2020.

Aiming to reclaim the top podium spot in a rivalry that has already captivated the world stage, Arshad Nadeem returns as Pakistan’s beacon of athletic hope.