KARACHI: Pakistan’s Olympic hope Shah Hussain and Wajahat Sarwar lost their bouts of the Judo Grand Slam 2015 in Tokyo on Sunday.
Both Japan-based players played in the -100 kilogramme weight category.
Shah lost to Brazilian judoka Correa Luciano after a tense battle which lasted for four minutes and 28 seconds.
Correa is world No 17, while Shah is ranked 44th. Shah had got bye in the first round.
Wajahat was downed by China’s Hu Kai in their five-minute tie.
“Both Shah and Wajahat played well,” Pakistan Judo Federation’s (PJF) secretary Masood Ahmed told ‘The News’.
“I think Shah had some problem in his hand. He was making foul after foul most probably because of that problem which caused his defeat ultimately. But the resistance for over four minutes against a leading player of the world should help him improve points,” Masood said.
Shah should train in Central Asia, he said. “In Central Asia, judo is very fast. If we are able to manage some training for Shah there or in France I hope he will further improve,” Masood said.
“We have talked to the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) about this matter. Let’s see what happens,” he said.
Shah still has a chance of qualifying for the Olympics. He will fight in a few qualifiers which will be played until May 29, 2016, after which International Judo Federation (PJF) will finalise the list of judokas entering the Rio Olympics.
Shah’s entry into the Olympics is extremely important for Pakistan. If Shah fails to qualify Pakistan will be taking part in the Games with only wild card entrants.