Pakistan at the 2020 Summer Olympics explained

Noc:PAK
Nocname:National Olympic Committee of Pakistan
Games:Summer Olympics
Year:2020
Location:Tokyo, Japan
Competitors:10
Sports:6
Flagbearer Close:Arshad Nadeem
Gold:0
Silver:0
Bronze:0
Appearances:auto

Pakistan competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.[1] [2] Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[3] It was Pakistan's eighteenth appearance at the Summer Olympics.

This Olympics was Pakistan's best performance since 2000 with both Talha Talib & Arshad Nadeem reaching the finals of their respective events.[4] [5] [6] [7] Gulfam Joseph also barely missed out on reaching the final of his event.[8] [9]

Competitors

width=180Sportwidth=55Menwidth=55Womenwidth=55Total
Athletics1 1 2
Badminton0 1 1
Judo1 0 1
Shooting3 0 3
Swimming1 1 2
Weightlifting1 0 1
Total 7 3 10

Athletics

See main article: Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification. Pakistani athletes further achieved the entry standards, either by qualifying time or by world ranking,[10] in the following track and field events (up to a maximum of 3 athletes in each event):[11] [12]

Track & road events
Field events

Badminton

See main article: Badminton at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Badminton at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification. For the first time in history, Pakistan entered one badminton player into the Olympic tournament. Mahoor Shahzad accepted the invitation from the Tripartite Commission and the Badminton World Federation to compete in the women's singles.[13]

Judo

See main article: Judo at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Judo at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification. Pakistan qualified one judoka for the men's half-heavyweight category (100 kg) at the Games. Rio 2016 Olympian Shah Hussain Shah accepted a continental berth from the Asian zone as the nation's top-ranked judoka outside of direct qualifying position in the IJF World Ranking List of June 28, 2021.[14]

Shooting

See main article: Shooting at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Shooting at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification. Pakistani shooters achieved quota places for the following events by virtue of their best finishes at the 2018 ISSF World Championships, the 2019 ISSF World Cup series, and Asian Championships, as long as they obtained a minimum qualifying score (MQS) by May 31, 2020.[15]

AthleteEventQualificationFinal
PointsRankPointsRank
Muhammad Khalil Akhtaralign=left rowspan=2Men's 25 m rapid fire pistol57215colspan="2" rowspan=3
Ghulam Mustafa Bashir57910
Gulfam JosephMen's 10 m air pistol5789

Swimming

See main article: article, Swimming at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Swimming at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification. Pakistan received a universality invitation from FINA to send two top-ranked swimmers (one per gender) in their respective individual events to the Olympics, based on the FINA Points System of June 28, 2021.[16]

AthleteEventHeatSemifinalFinal
TimeRankTimeRankTimeRank
Muhammad Haseeb TariqMen's 100 m freestyle53.8162colspan="4" rowspan=2
Bisma KhanWomen's 50 m freestyle27.7856

Weightlifting

See main article: Weightlifting at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Weightlifting at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification. Pakistan received an invitation from the Tripartite Commission and the IWF to send Talha Talib in the men's 67-kg category to the Olympics, marking the country's return to the sport for the first time since 1976.

Non-competing sports

Equestrian

See main article: Equestrian at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Equestrian at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification. For the first time in history, Pakistan qualified one eventing rider into the Olympic equestrian competition, by finishing in the top two, outside the group selection, of the individual FEI Olympic Rankings for Group F (Africa and Middle East).[17] [18] In September 2020, Azad Kashmir, who Usman Khan rode when he qualified, died after suffering a severe heart attack. Athletes and their horse qualify as a pair for the Olympics, leaving Khan's place at the Games in doubt.[19]

In 2021, Khan attempted to qualify aboard a new horse Kasheer, but failed to obtain the minimum eligibility requirements at the Sydney International Three-Day Event in May. The following outcome implied that he would not be eligible to start at the Olympics. Attempting to obtain the minimum requirements on back-to-back weeks was against the regulations set by FEI,[20] Khan competed the week after Sydney at an event in Naracoorte, where he suffered a rotational fall which resulted in the passing of Kasheer.[21]

References


Notes and References

  1. News: Pakistan to field 20-member contingent in Tokyo Games: POA . Dawn . May 16, 2021.
  2. News: First batch of Pakistan's Olympic squad leaves for Tokyo . Dawn . July 17, 2021.
  3. News: Joint Statement from the International Olympic Committee and the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee. 28 March 2020. Olympics. 24 March 2020.
  4. Web site: Arshad Nadeem misses out on medal but wins nation over. 2021-08-08. www.thenews.com.pk. en.
  5. Web site: Pakistan hails Arshad Nadeem for 'unreal' effort at Tokyo Olympics. 2021-08-08. www.geo.tv. en.
  6. Web site: Tokyo Olympics: Talha narrowly misses out winning medal for Pakistan SAMAA. 2021-08-08. Samaa TV. 25 July 2021 . en-US.
  7. Web site: Dawn.com. 2021-07-25. 'Still proud of you': Weightlifter Talha Talib misses out on Olympic gold but a hero is born. 2021-08-08. DAWN.COM. en.
  8. Web site: Pakistan's Gulfam Joseph nearly misses out on finals spot in Olympic shooting. 21 August 2021. www.tribune.com.pk. 24 July 2021 . en.
  9. Web site: Gulfam's high-class effort goes in vain. 21 August 2021. www.thenews.com.pk. en.
  10. Web site: Salman . Muhmmad . Pakistan Rank in Olympics 2021 . Financeupdates . 13 January 2021 . Salman . 5 August 2021.
  11. Web site: iaaf.org – Top Lists. IAAF. 8 April 2019.
  12. Web site: IAAF Games of the XXXII Olympiad – Tokyo 2020 Entry Standards. IAAF. 8 April 2019. 8 April 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408160334/https://cdn.dosb.de/user_upload/Olympische_Spiele/Tokio_2020/internationale_Qualifikationskriterien/IAAF_-_Athletics_20180806.pdf. dead.
  13. News: Sohail. Imran. Badminton star Mahoor Shahzad to represent Pakistan in Tokyo Olympics. Geo TV. 2 June 2021 . 2 July 2021.
  14. News: Nicolas. Messner. Tokyo 2020: Official Olympic Qualification List. International Judo Federation. 22 June 2021 . 2 July 2021.
  15. Web site: Quota Places by Nation and Number. 1 January 2018. www.issf-sports.org/. ISSF. 2 September 2018.
  16. Web site: Tokyo Olympics Entry Lists Released, Swimming Begins July 24. 14 July 2021 . Swimming World Magazine. 16 July 2021.
  17. News: Pakistan's Usman Khan achieves Tokyo 2020 qualification. An Eventful Life. 2 December 2019. 2 December 2019.
  18. News: Tokyo 2020 team and individual quota places confirmed by FEI. FEI. 17 February 2020. 1 March 2020.
  19. Web site: 20 September 2020. First Pakistani athlete to earn Olympic equestrian place could have to requalify. 20 September 2020. www.insidethegames.biz.
  20. Web site: 19 February 2019. Clarification on the Eventing Qualification. 18 May 2021. FEI.
  21. Web site: 18 May 2021 . Vale Usman Khan's Kasheer . 18 May 2021. An Eventful Life.