Asian Men’s Under-23 Volleyball: PVF facing problems in preparing team

KARACHI: Pakistan Volleyball Federation (PVF) is fighting against all odds to prepare the national lot for Asian Men’s Under-23 Volleyball Championship which will be held in Myanmar in August.

With the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) and the Ministry for Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) giving nothing to federations for the last seven months, the PVF has been running the camp at the Sports Board Punjab (SBP) facility at Lahore through its own resources for one month. “It’s an important event, so we wanted to prepare well as we have 20 to 22 quality players. We are thankful to Sports Board Punjab for giving us at least hostel and training facility whose expenses we are meeting by ourselves,” a PVF senior official told ‘The News’.

The official was quick to add that the PVF had requested the PSB for the camp in Islamabad. “We have filed our request with the Board for the camp in Islamabad. Let’s see how it responds,” the official said. The camp is being supervised by Iranian coach Hamid Movahedi.

Having taken charge in early 2017 as Pakistan coach, Movahedi has played a key role in the build-up of the country’s various age-group teams. He not only raised a strong junior side but also for the first time in history formed a youth team which he kept with the juniors for months in a training camp.

Though Pakistan finished eighth in the 18th Asian Games last year, his charges surprised everyone when they shocked strong China and India in the competitions.“We are working hard with the boys. We have quality stuff but there is a need to facilitate them at every step,” Movahedi said.

“We are training six hours a day and for that we will need top quality nutrition and other relevant training facilities. I hope the PSB will take care of our team in future,” the coach said.Movahedi’s contract will expire in March. Major part of his salary is being paid by the PSB. The PVF contributes 2500 dollars to his salary.

It is also in the plans of the PVF to hold a camp of the senior side alongside the under-23 players in the federal capital.A PVF source said that a final decision had not yet been taken.If it is decided, the two camps would be held separately under the supervision of Movahedi, the source said.

Pakistan’s senior team has a number of international commitments this year, including Asian Qualifiers for the Challengers Cup, Asian Championship and continental qualifiers for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.The national volleyball players will train at Hamidi Hall which is smaller than the facility at the Liaquat Gymnasium which is, however, not in good condition.