Judokas’ participation in Islamic Games in jeopardy

PJF mulls approaching Prime Minister and IJF

KARACHI: After receiving a blunt reply from the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) regarding the entries of the national judokas for the Islamic Games, Pakistan Judo Federation (PJF) is mulling an option to approach the Prime Minister of Pakistan and International Judo Federation (IJF).

A well-placed source in the PJF confided in ‘The News’ on Monday that the POA had written a letter to the federation last week in which the NOC had shown its regret regarding sending the entries of national judokas for the Islamic Games.

The source said that the POA had said in its letter that the matter was being examined by the NOC’s senior legal advisor for further action. The source added that the POA further wrote that it was not possible to accede to the request of the PJF as the accreditation date had already been expired on February 16.

The source further conceded that the PJF had already shown expression of interest to the POA in early January regarding sending judokas to Baku for featuring in the Islamic Games and had also provided all the relevant details to the NOC subsequently.

The source said that the PJF was now mulling an option to bring the matter in the notice of the Prime Minister and the IJF.

“We desperately want to ensure the entries of our judokas for the Islamic Games. We have some highly talented judokas like the Olympian Shah Hussain and young Qaiser Khan who could win medals for Pakistan in the Games. We are thinking to approach the PM and the IJF,” the source informed.

The source said that in letters the PJF had clarified its legal position, particularly, regarding withdrawal of its cases against the NOC.

The PJF had held its elections on August 27 last year in the presence of an observer from the IJF.

On the eve of the elections, a couple of senior officials of the POA had held a meeting with the IJF’s representative and had informed him about the NOC’s reservations pertaining to the legal position of the PJF which is being led by Col Junaid Alam, who is also a senior official of the Army Sports Directorate.

As per Lausanne agreement, both the POA and Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) are bound to recognise those federations which are recognised by their International Federations (IFs).

The PJF is recognised by the IJF. Because of its affiliation with the IJF, the POA hasn’t been seen creating hurdles in the way of the PJF whenever the federation wants to send its players abroad for international competitions. However, it has been seen that the NOC has served as a stumbling block in the way of the PJF when it comes to ensure players’ entries in such Games for which it is compulsory for the PJF to ensure the entries through NOC.

And it also happened in the case of the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games when the NOC had sent Shah Hussain’s entry directly without taking the PJF into confidence.

In that event, Shah had won silver medal for Pakistan. And now, a source said that the POA had again contacted the mother of Japan-based Shah Hussain for ensuring his entry in the Islamic Games but she refused to give the NOC a green signal because of some compulsions.

The POA chief Lt Gen (retd) Arif Hasan had categorically stated at a press conference here a few months ago that the NOC would not send judokas’ entries for the Islamic Games from the platform of the PJF.

This correspondent tried to contact the POA’s president Lt Gen (retd) Arif Hasan and secretary Khalid Mehmood but they did not receive the calls.The Islamic Games are slated to be held in the Azerbaijan’s capital Baku from May 12-22.