Pakistan’s lone para-athlete Haider Ali heads to Paris for Paralympics

Haider Ali, the sole representative from Pakistan at the upcoming Paris Paralympics, departed for the French capital on Monday, accompanied by his coach, Akbar Ali.

The Paralympic Games, set to officially begin with the opening ceremony on August 28, follow the recently concluded Olympics.

Haider, who hails from Gujranwala, will compete in the F37 discus throw event on September 6. This marks Haider's fifth participation in the Paralympics, with his most notable achievement being a gold medal in the discus throw at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, where he recorded a throw of 55.26 meters.

In previous Paralympics, Haider secured a silver medal in the long jump at the 2008 Beijing Games and a bronze in the same event at the 2016 Rio Games. Unfortunately, he missed the 2012 London Paralympics due to an injury.

Yasir Pirzada, the Director General of the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB), previously announced Haider’s participation in this year’s Paralympics and expressed confidence in his potential to win another medal for Pakistan. "We are proud to send Haider Ali to the Paralympics once again. His remarkable talent and dedication make him a strong contender, and we believe he will bring glory to Pakistan once more," Pirzada stated.

The Paris Paralympics will see over 4,000 athletes from 170 countries showcasing their skills across various sports.

Meanwhile, in the recently concluded Paris Olympics, Pakistan’s javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem made headlines by winning a gold medal with a record throw of 92.97 meters, marking Pakistan's first medal of the Games. He finished ahead of India’s Neeraj Chopra, the gold medalist at the Tokyo Olympics, and Grenada’s Anderson Peters, who completed the podium.