Tokyo Olympics 2020: Who are the 10 athletes representing Pakistan in the Olympics?

 10 athletes and athletes representing Pakistan in the Olympics

Which 11 players play in Pakistan's cricket team is a list that most Pakistanis remember verbally but there is also a list of 10 athletes who participated in the biggest sports competition in the world that most Pakistanis are unaware of.

Six Pakistani athletes have arrived in Tokyo to compete in the Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, and the remaining four will arrive on July 21 and 22.

The opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics 2020, which was postponed due to last year's Code 19 epidemic, will take place on July 23. The 22-member contingent representing Pakistan includes 10 athletes and 12 officials.

Like the last Olympics, the Pakistani hockey team did not qualify for the competition.

The six athletes who arrived in Tokyo yesterday include three from the shooting team and two from the swimming team. Besides, Pakistani badminton player Mahur Shehzad is also part of the squad.

So let's take a look at whom are the 10 athletes representing Pakistan in the Tokyo Olympics and how they have performed before.

Najma Parveen (200 meters)

This is the second Olympics for Najma Parveen, a 30-year-old athlete who competed in the 200 meters event. Earlier, he represented Pakistan in the 100 meters at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Najma Parveen, a Pakistan Army soldier from Faisalabad, has been winning national titles at various events since 2010 and despite representing Pakistan in the last Olympics, this time her participation in the event through a wild card has been dramatic.

Najma Parveen won six gold medals at the 2019 Peshawar National Games, while she won one gold, two silver, and one bronze medal in various events at the South Asian Games in Nepal the same year.

He won a gold medal in the 400 meters at the South Asian Games and a silver medal in the 200 meters event. She was also part of the Pakistani team that won silver in the 4x400 relay race and bronze in the 400m relay.

Arshad Nadeem (Javelin Throw)

Arshad Nadeem, 24, will represent Pakistan in the javelin throw. He is the only Pakistani athlete to directly qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.

In 2019, the then President of the Pakistan Athletics Federation, Major General (retd) Muhammad Akram Sahi, while talking to BBC Urdu correspondent Abdul Rashid Shakur, said that Arshad Nadeem was the first athlete in the history of Pakistan to compete directly in the Olympics. Have qualified for, otherwise, Pakistani athletes have always competed in the Olympics on the basis of wild cards.

This is due to his outstanding performance in the South Asian Games held in Nepal in 2019 when he set a new record not only nationally but also won a gold medal by throwing a javelin throw 86.29 meters in the javelin throw. ۔

Arshad Nadeem affiliated to Pakistan WAPDA belongs to Mian Channu. He won a bronze medal at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta.

Arshad has also represented Pakistan in the 2017 Islamic Solidarity Games and the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Arshad Nadeem has also represented Pakistan in the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Qatar.

Mahur Shehzad (Badminton)

Mahur Shehzad has represented Pakistan in several international badminton competitions. He won Pakistan International event in 2017 and 2019.

She was runner-up with Palwasha Bashir in the doubles event of the international event in Kenya last year.

When the Badminton World Federation, the governing body of the game of badminton, released the latest player rankings in July 2019, for the first time in history, a Pakistani player, Mahur Shehzad, was among the top 150 players.

Mahur has been Pakistan's number one badminton player for four years before 2019, while he has also been the national champion for the last three years.

Pakistan won gold and doubles bronze medal in the singles at the International Badminton Tournament 2017, while in January 2017, it won the singles at the National Badminton Championships and took second place in the women's doubles.

Mahur also represented Pakistan at the 2014 Asian Games in South Korea, after which she won the women's singles at the All Pakistan Ranking Badminton Tournament in 2015 and 2016 and finished second in the 2015 National Badminton Championships. Of was

She finished second in Pakistan International 2016 and the winner of the 2017 tournament.

Shah Hussain Shah (Judo)

Shah Hussain Shah will represent Pakistan in judo competitions. He will also lead the Pakistani contingent with the Pakistani flag at the opening ceremony.

He is the son of renowned Pakistani boxer Hussain Shah, who won a bronze medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Since then, Pakistan has not won an individual medal in the Olympics.

Shah Hussain Shah, 28, is competing in his second Olympics. He has previously represented Pakistan in the Rio Olympics.

Shah Hussain Shah won a silver medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. He has twice won gold medals at the South Asian Games.

"I am proud to be my country's Olympic athlete," he wrote in an Instagram post. I want to keep my father's tradition. This is my second Olympics and I sacrificed a lot for it. It's not just because of my father's hard work but because of the prayers of my fans. "

Talha Talib (Weightlifting 67 kg category)

Talha Talib, 21, is going to represent Pakistan in the 67kg weightlifting category. This is the first time in 46 years that a weightlifter is representing Pakistan in the Olympics. Arshad Malik last represented Pakistan in a weightlifting event in 1976.

The young weightlifter from Gujranwala has performed well internationally in recent years.

Talha Talib won a bronze medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and set a new national record. He won a gold medal at the 2016 Commonwealth Youth Weightlifting Championships.

Bismillah Khan (swimming 50 meters freestyle)

Bismillah Khan will compete in the 50m freestyle event in swimming.

She has previously represented Pakistan at the World Aquatics Championships and the Asian Games. However, she did not perform well in these competitions. However, in 2019 South Asian Games, she competed in the 200 meters. Won the silver medal in the individual medal.

Bismillah Khan's elder sister Karan Khan has also represented Pakistan in international competitions, including the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Muhammad Haseeb Tariq (100m freestyle swimming)

Along with Bismillah, Haseeb Tariq is the second member of the Pakistani swimming team to compete in the 100-meter freestyle event at the Tokyo Olympics.

Haseeb Tariq, 25, was born in Karachi and is now considered one of the country's most talented swimmers.

During the last six years, Haseeb Tariq has performed well in the national championships. He is also a national record holder in the 100-meter race and is looking forward to further improving his performance in Tokyo.

Pakistani Shooters

Three Pakistani shooters will compete in the Tokyo Olympics. Gulfam Joseph, 19, will compete in the 100m air pistol event.

Ghulam Mustafa Bashir and Khalil Akhtar will compete in the 25m Rapid Fire Pistol event.

Khalil Akhtar and Ghulam Mustafa were also scheduled to take part in the Shooting World Cup in India this year, but both could not get visas.

Khalil Akhtar has won a silver medal at the 2016 South Asian Games in Guwahati. He finished sixth at 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia.

Ghulam Mustafa Bashir has reached the Tokyo Olympics on an Olympic quota.