Website says Shah has qualified for Rio Olympics

PJF writes to IJF to get information confirmed

KARACHI: According to the website of International Judo Federation (IJF) Pakistan’s Japan-based judoka Shah Hussain has qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics on the basis of continental quota.

As per the website, the 22-year-old two-time Asian bronze medalist and 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games silver medalist has cruised through to the Olympics with 243 points.

Pakistan Judo Federation (PJF) has emailed a letter to the IJF to get the information confirmed. “Yes, we have written to the IJF and hopefully the response will come soon. But I think he has made it,” a top PJF official told ‘The News’ on Tuesday.

Shah would be the first Pakistani judoka ever to compete in Olympics.

Shah failed to earn a ticket for Rio de Janeiro directly when he fell in the first bout to a Brazilian in the Grand Prix in Almaty last week.

In Tashkent last month, Shah finished fifth in the -100 kg category in the Asian Championship.

He appeared in qualifiers from May 2014 to May 2016, featuring in a dozen international events. His world ranking slipped to 55 from last year’s 44.

As per rules only one player from a country can feature in a certain weight in Olympics, so several judokas from various countries with high rankings failed to find a place.

For example, in the -100kg four players from Japan qualified but only one will feature in Rio Games.

When Shah lost to the Brazilian in Grand Prix in Almaty, a PJF top official told this correspondent that Shah’s Olympic chapter had been closed. However, he had earlier indicated that Shah could qualify on continental quota as the PJF had already filed a request with the IJF for that.

This correspondent learnt that Shah Hussain was disturbed after losing to the Brazilian.

But he was conveyed the message the following day by an Indian judo player with a clip from the IJF website and told him that he had qualified for Rio Games to be held in August.

Shah forwarded those details to his father Hussain Shah who informed the PJF top officials on Monday night.

His father Hussain Shah is the only Pakistani boxer to have won a medal at the Olympics level — a bronze in 1988.

Hussain Shah during a detailed talk with this correspondent from Tokyo late on Monday night sounded very emotional after he got the information from his son that he had made it to Rio on continental quota. “If it is confirmed, it will be great news for me and my family. We have worked really hard on Shah (his parents call him Shah Baba). It will be a big achievement at a young age of only 22,” Hussain Shah said.

“I am an Olympian and my son will also become an Olympian,” he said.

When asked what plans he had for his son ahead of the Olympics, Hussain Shah said it would be better if he was sent to Russia for  couple of months for training.

“If he is properly trained I am confident he will win a medal in Rio,” Hussain Shah said.

Europe has been given a quota of 25 (14 men, 11 women), Africa 24 (14-10), Pan America 21 (13-8), Asia 20 (12-8) and Oceania 10 (7-3).