The Paris Olympic Games 2024 are nearing their conclusion, with India sitting on a total of 5 medals – 4 bronze and 1 silver. Javelin throw hero Neeraj Chopra was the country’s biggest gold medal hope after wrestler Vinesh Phogat was disqualified ahead of her 50kg women’s freestyle final. But, Neeraj also couldn’t get India the elusive yellow metal, with Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem beating him to the No. 1 spot on the podium. As a result of the results from the men’s javelin throw final, Pakistan went higher than India in the overall medals tally.

After the conclusion of events on Day 13, Pakistan were ranked 53rd in the standings, courtesy of their sole gold medal in the men’s javelin throw final. India, on the other hand, was placed 64th, with one silver and four bronze.

Despite fetching more medals than Pakistan in the Paris Games, India is ranked 11 places lower than their neighbours in the official standings. That’s purely because of the ranking system opted by the International Olympic Committee.

The common method of determining the success of countries at the Olympic Games is a ranking order based on the number of gold medals won. Even if a nation has 10 silver or bronze medals, it would be ranked lower than a solitary gold medal. The tally of silver and bronze medals only comes into effect when there’s a tie between two nations on the number of gold medals won.

In the men’s javelin throw final, Arshad clinched his country’s first gold medal in four decades while also setting a new Olympic record with his stunning throw. Pakistan had never won an individual Olympic gold medal until the Paris Games where Arshad defeated India’s javelin throw hero Neeraj Chopr. The South Asian nation has a total of three gold medals to its name in Olympic history, and all three of them came in field hockey – in 1960, 1968, and 1984.

In Pakistan’s history, only two athletes have won individual Olympic medals of any color. They both were bronze – in wrestling in 1960 and boxing in 1988. Pakistan last won an Olympic medal at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona when the field hockey clinched bronze.