Website design By BotEap.comThe javelin throw is very technical and is also stressful on the arms and shoulders. In a region where there is a shortage of internationally competitive field athletes, javelin thrower Justin Arop rose to the occasion and for many years represented Uganda at the Pan-African Games, the Commonwealth of Nations Games and the Olympic Games. In the process he broke the African record. Arop’s national record still stands and he remains the best individual field athlete in Uganda.

Website design By BotEap.comArop’s remarkable athletic talent was evident as a teenager. In 1976, at the Central and East African Championships held in Zanzibar, the 18-year-old Arop won the gold medal with a distance of 68.05m. Arop dethroned veteran champion John Mayaka of Kenya, who had also won the bronze medal at the 1974 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh with an African record throw of 77.56m. At the next East and Central African Championships, Arop would again be the javelin champion (71.04 m) in 1977 in Mogadishu in Somalia, in 1981 (74.94 m) in Mombasa in Kenya, in 1982 (73.02 m) in Cairo in Egypt, in 1985 in Cairo, in 1989 (69.94 m) in Arusha in Tanzania and in 1990 (66.50 m) in Jinja in Uganda. In 1989, at the same Championships, the strong and agile Arop won gold with his 13.15m shot put. The Championships ended in 1990; they were briefly revived in 1995 as the East African Championships (Zone V), but had lost their spark and were only held for three more years, in 2001, 2003 and 2005.

Website design By BotEap.comAt the 1978 Pan-African Games, held in Algiers, Justin Arop won gold with a national record throw of 76.94m, far ahead of runner-up silver medalist Ali Memmi of Tunisia (71.28m) and bronze medalist John Mayaka (70.76m) from Kenya. The next venue for the Pan African Games was Nairobi in Kenya in 1987, almost 10 years after Algiers in 1978. Arop skillfully defended the continental title from it, winning gold with a throw of 73.42m. One meter behind was silver medalist Zakayo Malekwa of Tanzania, who was ahead of bronze medalist George Odera (71.30m) of Kenya.

Website design By BotEap.comArop remains the only track and field athlete to have represented Uganda at three Olympic venues. Born on March 24, 1958 in the Acholi region of northern Uganda, Arop was 22 years old when he represented Uganda at the 1980 Olympics in Moscow. In the Javelin Throw Qualifying Round, held on July 26, 1980, Arop’s best throw was amazing. His best distance was 82.68m, a new Ugandan record that has yet to be broken! It was also a new record from Africa! However, many of the javelin throwers were ahead of Arop: he placed eighth and far behind the best athlete in the qualifying round, Ferenec Paraqi of Hungary (88.76m). The requirement had been for the top twelve, plus any additional competitors throwing more than 80 meters to qualify for the final round. Arop was the only African finalist. Marius Corbett of the Republic of South Africa set the current African record of 88.75 meters in 1998.

Website design By BotEap.comThe twelve Olympic finalists made their final throws on July 27. With a best throw of 77.34m, including some fouls, Justin Arop’s ranking dropped to 12th, or last among the finalists. Unfortunately, Arop’s final throw was 77.34m, more than 5 meters short of his best record throw in the qualifying rounds! The winners were gold medalist Dainis Kula (Soviet Union) with 91.20m, silver medalist Aleksandr Makarov (Soviet Union) with 89.64m, and Wolfgang Hanisch (East Germany) with a throw of 86.72m.

Website design By BotEap.comAmong the many years that Justin Arop won the javelin at the Uganda Athletics Championships are 1981 (75.90m), 1982 (68.30m), 1984 (64.17m), 1985 (65.22 m), 1986 (74.10 m), 1987 (65.23 m), 1990 (64.48 m), and 1991 (66.76 m). Arop was also the national shot put champion in 1982 (14.24m), 1985 (13.20m), and 1986 (12.82m).

Website design By BotEap.comAt the 1984 Olympic Games held in Los Angeles in August, the challenge was for the top twelve javelin throwers plus all those who achieved at least 83 meters to advance to the Final Round. On August 4, Arop’s performance among the athletes in the Group A qualifying round was a far cry from his Olympic performance in Moscow in 1980. This time, Arop’s best throw of 69.76m was the worst among the 14 Group competitors. Arop was eliminated from advancing to the finals. In the end, Arop’s 69.76m distance put him 27th overall, just ahead of last 28th and last-placed Mike O’Rourke of New Zealand, whose outrageous fouls didn’t allow him to score at all. The other African competitor, Zakayo Malekwa from Tanzania, with whom Arop was familiar competitively, was ranked 19th overall.

Website design By BotEap.comOn September 24, 1988, the 30-year-old Arop was ready to throw the javelin in his third Olympic appearance. This time the measuring stick was for the top twelve and ties, and all those who had shot a distance of 79 meters to advance to the Final Round. There were two groups of qualifying rounds and Arop was in Group B. Of the 19 competitors in Group B, Arop placed 17th with a best throw of 69.10m. Therefore, he did not reach the final. In the end, Arop placed 33rd out of 38 competitors. Interestingly, Zakayo Malekwa, again the only other African competitor, placed 34th with his best throw of 67.56m. The winning Olympic medalists were Czechoslovakia’s Jan Zelezny (85.90m, a new Olympic record), Finland’s Seppo Raty (81.62m) and Finland’s Tapio Korjus (81.42m).

Website design By BotEap.comOn August 29, 1987, at the 2nd IAAF World Championships in Athletics held in Rome, out of 37 participants, Arop was eliminated in the qualifying round after registering a best throw of 71.76 meters and finishing 14th. The medal-winning finalists were future Olympic medalist Seppo Raty of Finland (83.54m), Viktor Yevsyukov of the Soviet Union (82.52m) and future Olympic medalist Jan Zelezny of Czechoslovakia (82.20m). And in Ulm, West Germany, at a track meet, Justin Arop threw the javelin 75.52 meters on August 6, 1988.

Website design By BotEap.comOn January 3 at the 1990 Commonwealth Games, held in Auckland, New Zealand, Arop’s best javelin throw was 70.74m. He was the best among the African competitors in the event, but I would only give him an 8th place finish in the final. The medalists were England’s Steve Backley (86.02m) and Mick Hill (83.32m), and New Zealander Gavin Lovegrove (81.66m).

Website design By BotEap.comJustin Arop was only 36 years old when he passed away in 1994. The Arop Memorial Championships, in his honour, were first held in Gulu, Northern Uganda, at Pece Stadium, in July 2006, September 2007 and April April 2009. In April 2010, the family pleaded with the Ugandan government to build a school or vocational institute in honor of Justin Arop.