Neeraj is like our son, wish to see him & Arshad compete at a packed stadium in Lahore: Pakistan star's coach

Pakistan javelin star Arshad Nadeem's coach Syed Hussain Bukhari has showered his love on Indian superstar Neeraj Chopra. Bukhari said Neeraj is like Pakistan's son and he wishes to see India's golden boy compete with Nadeem at a packed stadium in Pakistan in the future. Nadeem won the elusive gold medal at the Commonwealth Games 2022 on Sunday after a stunning performance in the men's javelin throw final.

Nadeem set a new Commonwealth Games record with a brilliant throw of 90.18m in the final as he beat the likes of reigning world champion Anderson Peters and others to finish on top of the podium. The Pakistan star also became the first-ever South Asian to breachthe 90m mark in javelin throw beating his arch-rival Chopra to the feat.

Nadeem and Chopra share a great rivalry on the field but they remain good friends off it and share a great bond between them. Their friendship has been spoken about a lot ever since Chopra and Nadeem won the gold and silver medals respectively at the Asian Games 2018. While Nadeem surpassed the 90m barrier during the Commonwealth Games 2022 on Sunday, Chopra was not in action in the competition.

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The Indian superstar had to pull out of the Commonwealth Games last month owing to an injury that he picked up during the World Athletics Championships final. Chopra had won the silver medal at the World Athletics Championships and would have entered the Commonwealth Games 2022 as the defending champion.

Speaking fondly about Chopra, Nadeem's coach Bukhari said Pakistan would shower the Indian javelin star with the same love as they did to the legendary Milkha Singh when he had defeated Abdul Khaliq in Lahore in 1960, if he wins in Pakistan.

“Most of the time, Arshad trains at the Jinnah Stadium in Islamabad and Lahore too, my wish is to see Arshad and Neeraj compete at a packed stadium in Lahore or Islamabad. Neeraj is also like our son. I as a Pakistani promise you that if Neeraj wins, we will shower him the same love we showered on Milkha Singh Ji when he won against Abdul Khaliq in Lahore in 1960. Athletes share a common bond of love for the sports," Bukhari was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.

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Bukhari believes Nadeem's success can do the same for Pakistan as Neeraj's gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics last year did for India. The javelin coach said he has recently witnessed a rise in youth taking up javelin throw and believes more will be inspired to play the game due to what Nadeem has achieved so far in his career.

“After Arshad’s Asian Games bronze and Tokyo Olympics qualification topping, I can say I get to see 30-40 javelin throwers in almost each training ground in Lahore. In recent months, I have seen youth coming from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and from near the Pakistan-China border areas come to enquire about trials at Lahore. What Neeraj did for India, Arshad’s Olympic participation and today’s record can do the same in Pakistan,” said Bukhari.