Wrestlers likely to train for one month in Iran

KARACHI: After having failed to feature in the Takhti Cup early this month in Iran, the national wrestlers are likely to get one-month training opportunity in Iran to prepare for the Commonwealth Games penciled in for April 4-15 in Gold Coast, Australia.

“The tour has almost been arranged,” a senior official of Pakistan Wrestling Federation (PWF) told ‘The News’ on Monday.“Our former Iranian coach Ghulam Reza Moazzan has told us that we could come to Iran and train with his club’s grapplers in the Hamadan province,” the official said.

He said that the PWF was waiting for the letter from Reza. “We have forwarded all our information to Reza and are waiting for his letter which will carry some important details of the tour and then we will apply for visas,” the official revealed.

The official said that six grapplers and coach Sohail Rasheed would be sent to Iran. He said that the federation had already taken up the issue of finances with the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB).

He added there was a chance that the Board would formally approve it on Tuesday (today). “If we get some assistance from the Board it will be of great significance as we direly need the tour,” the official was quick to add.

If there is no hurdle, the national grapplers will undergo training for the whole March. Although Pakistan would compete in the wrestling event in Gold Coast from April 12, it has been decided that the grapplers will proceed to Australia along with the rest of the contingent to undergo some training there and acclimatise with the local conditions. “Yes, we will go a bit early to train there,” the PWF official said.

Pakistan will feature in ten disciplines in the Commonwealth Games but wrestling is the only sport in which there is hope of medals. In December, Pakistan claimed one silver and ten bronze medals in the Commonwealth Wrestling Championship in Johannesburg.

Mohammad Bilal (57kg), Abdul Wahab (65kg), Asad Butt (74kg), the 2010 Commonwealth Games gold medallist Mohammad Inam (86kg), Umair Ahmed (97kg) and Tayyab Raza (125kg) will represent Pakistan in the Australia event.

All of them are highly experienced and have won medals at the Commonwealth level.In the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, Pakistan claimed one silver and one bronze in wrestling. The national wrestlers have been training in Lahore for the last few days.

A senior wrestler told this correspondent that they were training hard. “We are doing what we can,” the wrestler said. However, he was quick to add that it would be of great value if a foreign tour was arranged ahead of the Commonwealth Games. “If we got a training tour it would be a real blessing and would add to our preparation,” the wrestler said.Besides hockey and wrestling, Pakistan will also feature in squash, athletics, swimming, table tennis, badminton, shooting, weightlifting and boxing.