Tag: Olympics 2021

  • Notable personalities laud Talha Talib for his unbeatable Olympics debut

    Notable personalities laud Talha Talib for his unbeatable Olympics debut

    Weightlifter Talha Talib has finished fifth in the 67 kilograms (KG) weightlifting competition of the Tokyo Olympics 2020 and Pakistanis lauded the debutant for his efforts.

    Read More – Pakistani athletes participating in Tokyo Olympics

    The 21-year-old Talha was just two points short of gaining an Olympic medal for Pakistan after 29 years.

    The Gujranwala-born, who was on his Olympics’ debut, finished with a total of 320 points as he broke his own national record by lifting 150 kg in snatch while he lifted 170 kg in clean and jerk.

    China’s Chen Lijun bagged gold while Colombia’s Luis Javier Mosquera and Italy’s Mirko Zanni clinched silver and bronze medals respectively.

    Many notable people, including politicians, cricketers, and celebrities lauded the 21-year-old for his efforts.

    https://twitter.com/76Shadabkhan/status/1419280792497311747?s=20

    Thanking everyone, the Olympian turned to his social media and wrote: “Alhamdulillah! Thank you everyone for your support and your love. In Sha Allah next time it will be better. Remember me in your prayers Special thanks to my father, my family, my coach Naveed Aslam Malik (late), and Pakistan Weightlifting Federation.”

  • Pakistani athletes participating in Tokyo Olympics

    Pakistani athletes participating in Tokyo Olympics

    Pakistan athletes would be competing in 200 metre Athletics, Badminton – Women Singles, Judo – 100 Kg, Shooting – 10 metre Air Pistol, Swimming 100-metre Freestyle Men’s and 50 metre Women’s, and 67kg Weightlifting.

    Pakistan’s last Olympics medal was the bronze the national hockey team achieved in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. The last individual medal was the bronze grabbed by boxer Hussain Shah in the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

    Pakistan Tokyo Olympics contingent (athletes):

    Arshad Nadeem – Javelin Throw

    Bisma Khan — Swimming 50 metre Freestyle women

    Ghulam Mustafa Bashir — Rapid Fire Pistol 25 metre

    Gulfam Joseph — Shooting 10 metre Air Pistol

    Mahoor Shahzad — Badminton Women’s Singles

    Muhammad Khalil Akhtar — Rapid Fire Pistol 25 metre

    Najma Parveen — Athletics 200 metres

    Shah Hussain Shah — Judo 100 Kg

    Syed Muhammad Haseeb Khan — Swimming 100 metre Freestyle Men’s

    Talha Talib — Weightlifting 67kg

  • Naomi Osaka lights Olympic cauldron at opening ceremony in Tokyo

    Naomi Osaka lights Olympic cauldron at opening ceremony in Tokyo

    Naomi Osaka lit the cauldron with the Olympic torch on Friday, which was handed off several times after entering the stadium, including from New York Yankees legend Hideki Matsui and a Japanese doctor and nurse. NBC Sports reported that the tennis star’s opening match was pushed back to Sunday so she could take part in the ceremony.

    Paralympian Tsuchida Wakako passed the torch on to several local students, who in turn took it to Osaka.

    Osaka’s mother, Tamika Osaka, is Japanese, and the tennis star is representing Japan in the Olympics.

    “The most important thing was to deliver a message of diversity and inclusion. In the end, we decided on [Osaka] because she is a great athlete and she has been delivering a variety of messages so we thought she was the best person to be the final torchbearer. It was a decision that the whole organising committee came to,” said Hioki Takayuki, who was the executive producer of the Tokyo 2020 Opening Ceremony.

    When asked whether Osaka’s appearance contributed to improving the image of the Tokyo Games, Takayuki said, “It’s more about the absolute values that Naomi Osaka offers. That’s what we focus on. Of course, for the Games as a whole and also for Japan, she is a jewel, she is a treasure for us, so that is why we selected her.”

    Osaka’s big moment comes shortly after she took a step back from the spotlight, citing her mental health, and opted to sit out the 2021 French Open and Wimbledon. In her first match in nearly two months, Osaka is set to take on 52nd-ranked Saisai Zheng of China in the opening round of the Olympic tournament.

    The torch paid homage to the cherry blossom, a symbol for the host country, with its shape of five “petals” from which the flames emerged, according to NBC Olympics, which also reported that the torch was made out of aluminum using the same technology used to produce Japan’s bullet trains.

    The Olympic flame, which goes out in Tokyo on August 8 during the Closing Ceremony, first became part of the modern Olympic tradition in 1928 when it appeared at the Games hosted in Amsterdam. Eight years later, the lighting ceremony and the torch relay were introduced in the Opening Ceremony programme.

    With a slogan of “hope lights our way,” the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Torch Relay began with the traditional lighting ceremony at Olympia, Greece, on March 12, 2020, which was the first lighting ceremony since 1984 to be held without spectators due to the Covid pandemic. In addition, the global health crisis forced the Games to be postponed by a year thus the torch relay was put on hold.

    A year later, on March 25, the torch relay resumed in Fukushima and traversed all 47 prefectures across Japan. The start of the relay coincided with when cherry blossoms hit their peak bloom and the 10th anniversary of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. Organisers wanted the torch relay and its slogan to “showcase the recovery of the areas worst affected by the disaster,” and amid the Covid pandemic, “hope lights our way” additionally symbolises the “light at the end of the dark tunnel; a beacon of hope for the world in the run-up to the Tokyo 2020 Games, themselves a symbol of the resilience, the unity and the solidarity of humankind.”
    Notably, 2021 also marks the 25th anniversary of the 1996 Atlanta Games where the late boxing icon Muhammad Ali lit the Olympic cauldron.

    Even before the official start of the Tokyo Games, this current Olympics cycle has been unlike any other and its reception from local residents has been deeply unpopular. Many fear that hosting the international competitions will result in superspreader events as the country is largely unvaccinated due to a relatively slow rollout and Covid cases continue to rise amid the threat of the delta variant. In addition, major Olympic sponsors and leaders in Japan continue to speak out against moving forward with the Games.

  • Pakistan cricketers extend best wishes to Tokyo Olympics contingent

    Pakistan cricketers extend best wishes to Tokyo Olympics contingent

    Pakistani cricketers have extended best wishes to the national contingent taking part in the Tokyo Olympics.

    The quadrennial sporting extravaganza, initially scheduled for summer 2020, started on Friday with an opening ceremony without spectators due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

    Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Hasnain, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shadab Khan, and Shaheen Shah Afridi and women team’s all-rounders Aliya Riaz and Nida Dar gave their encouragement and support to their fellow national athletes who would be vying for glory in nine different events.

    The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) released a video with messages of the seven men and two women players.

    Wishing good luck to the Tokyo Olympics contingent, all-rounder Aliya Riaz said: “Please enjoy yourself and give it your best shot; we are all behind you.”

    All-rounder Nida Dar said she was rooting for Pakistani athletes as it was a big occasion for them and vowed to give them all the support they needed.

    “I am backing the Pakistan Tokyo Olympics contingent to do well in the biggest sporting extravaganza. It is a big occasion for these athletes; we would be giving them all the support they need and would follow their progress,” she said.

    Especially wishing Mahoor Shahzad, Bisma Khan, and Arshad Nadeem the best of luck, former skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed hoped the athletes would bring glory to the country.

    “I want to wish Pakistan’s Tokyo Olympics contingent the very best. My best wishes are with all the athletes, especially Mahoor Shahzad, Bisma Khan, and Arshad Nadeem. I am sure you all will give it your best to bring glory to the country,” Sarfaraz said.

    Shadab Khan, expressing his support, said: “My best wishes are with all the athletes who are representing Pakistan in the Tokyo Olympics. Go well.”

    “Good luck to the entire Pakistan Tokyo Olympics contingent, especially Shah Hussain and Talha Talib,” pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi said.

    Wishing the best for the athletes, Faheem Ashraf said: “My best wishes are with Pakistani athletes competing in the Tokyo Olympics. Good luck and go well.”

    Batsman Fakhar Zaman said: “I want to wish the very best to Pakistan’s Tokyo Olympics contingent, especially Mahoor Shahzad and Najma Parveen.”

    Asking the players to enjoy themselves while they are out there and assuring that the whole country was backing them, Hasan Ali expressed his confidence in the contingent.

    “My best wishes are with our Tokyo Olympics contingent. Please […] enjoy yourself and give your best. The entire country is backing you,” he said.

    Meanwhile, Mohammad Hasnain added: “My best wishes are with the athletes and officials representing Pakistan in the Tokyo Olympics, especially Arshad Nadeem and Bisma Khan.”

    Pakistan athletes would be competing in 200 metre Athletics, Badminton – Women Singles, Judo – 100 Kg, Shooting – 10 metre Air Pistol, Swimming 100 metre Freestyle Men’s and 50 metre Women’s, and 67kg Weightlifting.

    Pakistan’s last Olympics medal was the bronze the national hockey team achieved in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. The last individual medal was the bronze grabbed by boxer Hussain Shah in the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

    Pakistan Tokyo Olympics contingent (athletes):

    Arshad Nadeem – Javelin Throw

    Bisma Khan — Swimming 50 metre Freestyle women

    Ghulam Mustafa Bashir — Rapid Fire Pistol 25 metre

    Gulfam Joseph — Shooting 10 metre Air Pistol

    Mahoor Shahzad — Badminton Women’s Singles

    Muhammad Khalil Akhtar — Rapid Fire Pistol 25 metre

    Najma Parveen — Athletics 200 metres

    Shah Hussain Shah — Judo 100 Kg

    Syed Muhammad Haseeb Khan — Swimming 100 metre Freestyle Men’s

    Talha Talib — Weightlifting 67kg

  • Tokyo 2020 chief doesn’t rule out the cancellation of Olympic Games

    Tokyo 2020 chief doesn’t rule out the cancellation of Olympic Games

    The Tokyo 2020 chief Toshiro Muto did not rule out the cancellation of Olympic Games.

    As per details, the chief of the Tokyo 2020 organising committee on Tuesday did not rule out a last-minute cancellation of the Olympics, as more athletes tested positive for Covid-19 and major sponsors ditched plans to attend Friday’s opening ceremony.

    Asked at a news conference if the global sporting showpiece might still be cancelled, Muto said he would keep an eye on infection numbers and liaise with other organisers if necessary.

    “We can’t predict what will happen with the number of coronavirus cases. So we will continue discussions if there is a spike in cases,” said Muto.

    “We have agreed that based on the coronavirus situation, we will convene five-party talks again. At this point, the coronavirus cases may rise or fall, so we will think about what we should do when the situation arises.”
    Covid-19 cases are rising in Tokyo and the Games, postponed last year because of the pandemic, will be held without spectators. Japan this month decided that participants would compete in empty venues to minimise health risks.

    There have been 67 cases of Covid-19 infections in Japan among those accredited for the Games since July 1, when many athletes and officials started arriving, organisers said on Tuesday.

    Japan, whose vaccination programme has lagged behind that of most other developed nations, has recorded more than 840,000 cases and 15,055 deaths and Games host city Tokyo is experiencing a fresh surge, with 1,387 cases recorded on Tuesday.

    Muto, a former top financial bureaucrat with close ties to Japan’s ruling party, is known for his careful choice of words, while officials are facing a domestic public angry about coronavirus restrictions and concerned over a possible spike in cases triggered by Games attendees arriving from abroad.

    Organisers, for whom International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach said cancelling the event had never been an option, have promised to keep the Games “safe and secure”.

    But experts see gaps in an Olympic “bubble” that mandates frequent testing and has been designed to limit participants’ movements.

    Seiko Hashimoto, who sits alongside Muto as organising committee President, said that safety measures introduced to reassure the Japanese public had not necessarily done so, and that she was aware that popular support for the Games had dropped.

    “I really want to apologise from my heart for the accumulation of frustrations and concerns that the public has been feeling towards the Olympics,” Hashimoto told the same news conference.

    ‘Unprecedented challenges’

    The first major test of how an Olympics can be held in the midst of a pandemic may well come in the men’s soccer tournament, when Japan face a South Africa side that could struggle to field 11 players due to the coronavirus.
    That match is due to take place on Thursday, a day before an opening ceremony that top sponsor Panasonic as well as Fujitsu and NEC Corp will skip. Toyota Motor dropped all TV ads linked to the Games on Monday.

    Bach, who Kyodo news agency said would meet Japan’s Emperor Naruhito on Thursday, said on Tuesday organisers could never have imagined the “unprecedented challenges” of bringing the global event to Tokyo, praising the “heroic efforts” of medical personnel and volunteers around the world amid the pandemic.
    Two members of Mexico’s Olympic baseball team tested positive for Covid-19 at the team hotel before their departure for Tokyo, the country’s baseball federation said on Tuesday.

    The athletes, Hector Velazquez and Sammy Solis, who tested positive on July 18, have been isolated, as have all team members pending results of more tests, it said.
    Kenji Shibuya, former director of the Institute for Population Health at King’s College London, said that the organisers’ bubble system was already “kind of broken”.
    “My biggest concern is, of course, there will be a cluster of infections in the (athletes’) village or some of the accommodation and interaction with local people,” he added.

    Organising committee President Hashimoto said members of the public were concerned “because they feel that the current situation appears to show that the playbooks that were meant to guarantee security is not providing a sense of safety.”

    In a poll in the Asahi newspaper, 68 per cent of respondents expressed doubt about the ability of Olympic organisers to control coronavirus infections, with 55 per cent saying they were opposed to the Games going ahead.