President Asif Ali Zardari has conferred Hilal-i-Imtiaz upon Olympic gold medallist Arshad Nadeem in recognition of his outstanding achievement in Paris Olympics-2024, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

The award was given at a special investiture ceremony held at Aiwan-i-Sadr in Islamabad on Thursday afternoon.

President Zardari earlier had approved civil award for javelin champion under Article 259 (2) of the Constitution. Under the constitutional provision, the president can confer Pakistani citizens with civil awards in recognition of their meritorious services in different fields of life.

Hilal-e-Imtiaz is Pakistan’s second-highest civilian award, given to both civilians and military personnel for exceptional contributions.

Arshad Nadeem became the first-ever individual gold medallist in the Olympics for Pakistan. He set a new Olympic record by throwing the javelin at a distance of 92.97 meters in the javelin throw competition of the Paris Olympics 2024.

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He surpassed Norway’s Andreas Thorkildsen, who threw farthest at 90.57 during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Besides Hilal-e-Imtiaz, big cash rewards and gifts were announced for Arshad Nadeem who began his athletic career with limited support.