PHF to make last-ditch effort for entering 2020 Olympics

KARACHI: The newly appointed PHF secretary Asif Bajwa will soon contact the FIH president Narinder Batra and FIH competition committee regarding Pakistan’s participation in the Olympics 2020.

PHF secretary hinted last week in Karachi during a press conference that the chances of Pakistan qualifying for the 2020 Olympics were thin. Since Pakistan failed to honour the commitment of participating in the FIH Pro League, they are not in a position to play international hockey and improve their ranking. They cannot participate in the qualifying round for the Olympics because it is the right of those countries which had not signed up for the FIH Pro League. Thus, due to poor planning, Pakistan are now out of both the Pro League and the pre-qualifying rounds.

FIH would release the new world hockey ranking in September or October and it is expected that Pakistan would go further down because of not playing international hockey. Currently Pakistan are ranked 12th.

A source in the PHF said that if a country failed to participate in the pre-qualifying rounds for Olympics, Pakistan could get an opportunity. But at the same time the source mentioned that any other team might also be given the opportunity.

Meanwhile, PHF officials are to appear in a meeting of the standing committee of National Assembly, which might grill them about the condition of the national game. PHF secretary is expected to appear in the meeting along with a few other officials. Pakistan are three-times Olympics gold medallist. They have also won as many as silver medals and two bronze.