Inam likely to be sent to Russia for training

KARACHI: Pakistan’s premier wrestler Mohammad Inam is expected to be sent to Russia to train for Olympic qualifiers.

This correspondent has learnt that a private television channel has promised Inam that it would send him to Russia for training in March.Inam is one of the main hopes of Pakistan for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics if he gets quality training on foreign soil.

Because of no state funding, Pakistan Wrestling Federation (PWF) is not in a position to make the two-time Commonwealth Games winner able to feature in all qualifying rounds for the world’s most prestigious extravaganza to be held in summer of 2020.

Inam, who has also won two world beach championships titles, is set to face Hamid Khan in the final of the Rustam-e-Pakistan at Faisalabad on Friday (tomorrow).

When Inam was contacted he said that only an oral agreement had been made. He added he had been told that he would be sent to Russia in March. “I had given my sponsor my Olympics plan when I returned from Australia last year after winning gold in the Commonwealth Games. I was told by him that I would be sent to Russia. Recently I was again told that in March I would be sent,” the wrestler told ‘The News’ on Wednesday.