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Thursday March 28, 2024

PWF plans to send four weightlifters to Australia

By Alam Zeb Safi
August 26, 2017

KARACHI: Pakistan plans to field four weightlifters in the Commonwealth Senior, Junior and Youth Weightlifting Championship penciled in for September 3-9 at Gold Coast, Australia.

“We are sending four weightlifters to Australia. Every one of them is capable of claiming a medal in the event,” Pakistan Weightlifting Federation’s (PWF) secretary Amjad Amin Butt told ‘The News’ from Lahore on Friday.

However, he refused to disclose the names of the weightlifters. “After taking input from the senior officials of the federation we will disclose the names of the touring party in a couple of days,” said Butt, himself a former weightlifter.

He said that two weightlifters of the touring party would feature in the junior category and two in the senior category. However, he was quick to add that the two juniors were so much capable that they would also feature in the senior category. Butt clarified that Pakistan would not be fielding any weightlifter in the youth category.

He also said that Pakistan would be fielding four weightlifters in the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games slated to be held in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, from September 17-27.“Furqan Anwar (77kg), Hafiz Jameel (105kg) and Usman Amjad Rathore (94kg) are part of the touring party. I cannot mention the name of the other weightlifter here due to some reasons,” he said.

“Furqan will make his international debut. Jameel is a senior boy but he had left the game for education,” Butt said.

He said that they were not expecting from them much as it would be a major event. “You know most of the Olympic and world champions belong to Asia, making the continent the toughest in the world. I don’t think any of our players will come in Group A. They will be in Group B and there they may fight for a graceful finish,” said Butt.

Butt himself will accompany the side as manager, while Ilyas Butt will serve as coach on the Ashgabat trip.  He added that both the events would help Pakistani weightlifters prepare for the next year’s Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.

Butt said that Pakistan might opt for a foreign coach in future. “It is not in our plans right now but we may hire someone from abroad from whom not only our players but the coaches could also learn,” the official said.

“We have not yet written to the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) for a foreign coach. Our three top coaches Ilyas Butt, Ali Aslam and Irfan Butt are highly qualified and could even be exported for coaching other nations. They are doing really well,” Butt said.

He said that Pakistan wanted to hold an Asian-level event in future if the government offered the federation financial support and provided top-level security.

“I am confident that the ICC World XI tour to Pakistan would pave way for the revival of international sports in Pakistan,” the official said.