WSF clears Israr, Abbas

KARACHI: World Squash Federation (WSF) has cleared doubts about the age of Pakistan’s Israr Ahmed and Abbas Shoukat which were expressed in the wake of World Junior Team Championships 2016.

The board of WSF took this decision at the recent Annual General Meeting after reviewing age test reports of both the players conducted in Sri Lanka. 

Pakistan won World Junior Team Championship after a gap of eight years in August this year in Poland. Later a few teams objected to the participation of Abbas and Israr, expressing doubts about their stated age.

WSF Chief Executive Andrew Shelley told ‘The News’: “Pakistan Squash Federation were informed that the bone scan testing report indicated that the bone ages of the two players were compatible with the athlete’s stated ages — with the caveat that the result is accurate +/- 1.7 years, as at the higher end of teenage years scans become less accurate.

“The WSF Board has reviewed the documentation and has decided that the positive but inconclusive result closes the specific matter of the two players in respect of the WSF World Juniors.

“However, in order to avoid future issues the WSF Board recommends that a programme of age testing at earlier ages is put in place by the Asian Squash Federation and other Regions to ensure that players in their region are more accurately assessed earlier and so later age disputes are avoided,” said Andrew.

WSF had asked PSF to conduct age tests at any of the WSF recommended laboratories. PSF refused to get the tests done from Malaysia and chose Sri Lanka.

“We had these age tests conducted in Sri Lanka from a laboratory which was approved by WSF. The results proved our stance and now we stand clear,” said PSF secretary Amir Nawaz. “The WSF has taken this decision on the report from Sri Lanka,” said Amir.

It is pertinent to mention here that WSF asked Asian Squash Federation (ASF) to conduct age tests of all Pakistani players participating in the Asian Junior Championships in September through scans arranged in Kuala Lumpur.

“This would enable them to be formally cleared to participate, and so cause any doubt to cease. (It would also enable any players who had also competed in the World Juniors to have any doubts about their results set aside),” stated Andrew Shelley in a letter to PSF to resolve this issue.