Wrestlers begin training from August 1

KARACHI: National wrestlers will assemble in Islamabad on August 1 to begin their preparation for the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games to be held in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, from September 17-27.

“We have already picked grapplers and will begin our preparation from August 1 in Islamabad,” Pakistan Wrestling Federation’s (PWF) secretary Arshad Sattar told ‘The News’ on Wednesday.

This is the first time that belt wrestling has come in the administrative control of the United World Wrestling and so is part of the Ashgabat event. And that is why a heavy wrestling squad of Pakistan would be fielding in the competitions.

“We will be fielding a 42-member wrestling contingent in these Games,” said Arshad, a former wrestler.“Three wrestlers will feature in freestyle wrestling, three in Greco-Roman style and 27 grapplers in belt wrestling. These include four female wrestlers. Two managers and seven coaches will accompany the wrestlers,” Arshad revealed.

He said the experienced and fancied wrestlers had been selected for the Olympic style wrestling. “The country’s premier wrestler Mohammad Inam, the 2017 Islamic Games bronze medallist Abdul Wahab and Mohammad Bilal will show their worth in freestyle wrestling. The Commonwealth Games gold medallist Azhar Hussain, Shoukat and Umair will try their luck in Greco-Roman style,” Arshad said.

“These were the top choices and cream of the country. It’s very tough because the standard of Asia is very high but still we are confident that our crop will perform well,” he said.“Inam is our top wrestler. He is highly experienced and has played superbly in the Islamic Games and is still in great form. I hope he will put in his best,” the official said.

“In Greco-Roman we have opted for Azhar Hussain who has a fine track record in this style besides having a gripping career in freestyle,” Arshad said. He said draws play a key role. “A lot depends on draws. If we get some good draws then we can hope for the best,” he said.

“In belt wrestling we have selected the grapplers after proper trials. It has four styles and is a mixture of several games. Because this is the first time that belt wrestling has been included we are taking chances to judge how our players can perform. It will help us properly plan for future events,” Arshad said.

To a query, he said that Pakistan direly needed a foreign coach. “If the state supports us in this area we can prepare a fighting lot,” he said.Pakistan will also be featuring in athletics, snooker and billiards, swimming, taekwondo, weightlifting, tennis, ju-jitsu, and kick-boxing.

Arshad also revealed that Pakistan’s young wrestler Inayatullah is set to feature in the Asian Cadet Wrestling Championship to be held in Thailand from July 20-23.

He will leave in the wee hours of Friday (tomorrow) from Lahore along with coach Ghulam Haider of Army. Inayat, who hails from Peshawar, is the son of former South Asian Games silver medallist wrestler Zahid Khan, who was a ten-time national champion.