Pakistani sprinter Abdul Mueed Baloch has brought great honor to the nation by securing a gold medal in the 400-meter race at the ongoing games in Venezuela.
The fourth International Military Sports Council (CISM) World Cadet Games commenced on August 17 at the Fuerte Tiuna military base in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela.
Mueed clinched the top spot in the men’s 400-meter race, finishing in an impressive time of 48.20 seconds. As he stood on the victory podium, he proudly raised the national flag.
The Pakistan Air Force athlete celebrated his triumph with traditional dance moves. Notably, Mueed holds the national record for the 400-meter race, clocking 46.73 seconds.
The Cadet Games, first launched in 2010, are a significant event within the CISM framework.
In 2015, Baloch, who was a passionate footballer at the time, first stepped onto the track at the National Coaching Centre. He made his competitive debut in February 2015 at the Aman Tech 100-meter sprint, finishing with a time of 12.50 seconds.
Meanwhile, the tradition of athletes biting their Olympic medals is less about testing the gold and more about creating a memorable photo op.
The Olympics, the world’s largest sporting event held every four years, sees thousands of athletes competing for the coveted gold medals.
Have you ever wondered why gold medalists often bite their medals? Iconic Olympians like Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt have been spotted with their teeth marks on their gold awards.
Historically, traders bit gold coins to verify their authenticity, as gold is a soft metal that leaves teeth marks. However, Olympic medals haven’t been made of pure gold since 1912, so athletes aren’t checking for purity.
So why the biting? It’s all about the photographers. According to the International Olympic Committee, the tradition is driven by photographers who believe that an athlete biting their medal creates a compelling image for newspapers.
David Velchinsky, president of the International Society of Olympic Historians, notes that this pose has become a favorite among photographers. They view it as an iconic shot, valuable for media and marketing, rather than a spontaneous act by the athletes.
Interestingly, this tradition doesn’t always go smoothly. David Müller, a silver medalist from the 2010 Winter Olympics, actually broke a tooth while posing for a photo.
I am an experienced writer, analyst, and author. My exposure in English journalism spans more than 28 years. In the past, I have been working with daily The Muslim (Lahore Bureau), daily Business Recorder (Lahore/Islamabad Bureaus), Daily Times, Islamabad, daily The Nation (Lahore and Karachi). With daily The Nation, I have served as Resident Editor, Karachi. Since 2009, I have been working as a Freelance Writer/Editor for American organizations.
