Volleyball camp to begin from Monday in Islamabad

KARACHI: National volleyballers will assemble in Islamabad on Sunday (tomorrow) to kick-start their preparations for the Asian Under-23 Volleyball Championships and Asian Seniors Men’s Championships which will be held later this summer.

“Yes, 20 players have been invited to the camp. They will assemble in Islamabad on Sunday and the camp will properly begin from Monday,” Pakistan Volleyball Federation (PVF) chairman Chaudhry Yaqoob told ‘The News’ on Friday.

The volleyballers will have to practise at the Hamidi Hall because the Liaquat Gymnasium is not ready for training. Yaqoob said that newly-hired Korean coach Kyoung Hoon Kim had already arrived in the federal capital. “The coach has arrived and InshaAllah the camp will begin as per schedule,” Yaqoob said.

Kim has been hired for six months. He has replaced Iranian coach Hamid Movahedi whose two-year contract expired in March. Yaqoob said that Kim’s contract would expire in September but by then he hoped the things would become better and effort would be made to extend his contract keeping in view the South Asian Games slated to be held in Nepal from December 1-10.

Four officials have been kept as support staff for Kim in the camp. Yaqoob also disclosed that six or seven senior players would be added to the camp after a month. “You know mostly we have Under-23 players who also play for senior team. We will add to the camp six or seven seniors after one month,” the official said. The Asian Under-23 Volleyball Championship will be held in Myanmar in August. Iran will host the Asian Seniors Men’s Volleyball Championships in September.