National hockey team departs for Jakarta Asian Games

LAHORE: National hockey team Saturday departed for Jakarta from Karachi to participate in the upcoming Asian Games.

Team captain Mohammad Rizwan said that the players have worked hard to clinch the victory. The eight-time Asian Games Championship will be a completely different event in Jakarta, insisted Rizwan.

“Last time at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games, we lost to India in the finals and thus the easy route to qualify directly for the Rio Olympics Games,” said Rizwan Sr whose team is currently undergoing a month-long training camp in Karachi.

“Eventually, we had to pay a heavy price as we couldn’t get through to the Olympics from the tough qualifying round. We don’t want that to happen this time round.” Pakistan will play its first match of the tournament on August 20 against Thailand. Pakistan will also play against Oman, Kazakhstan, Malaysia and Bangladesh. The side had earlier said its participation was subject to the release of their salaries. The players complained that the board has not paid them a single penny for the past six months They confirmed their participation in the tournament after Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) President Brig (retd) Khalid Sajjad Khokhar assured the team that all dues will be cleared. “The Rs200 million grant for the PHF has not been sanctioned by the government for some reason. I had made it clear that the dues will be paid before their departure even if I have to sell my personal belongings [to clear them],” he said. Pakistan has to perform well in the Asian Games if their participation in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics is to be confirmed.