Green-shirts training camp to be held in Lahore later this month

KARACHI: Pakistan hockey team’s training camp for the qualifying rounds of Tokyo Olympics 2020 will begin in the last week of August in Lahore, ‘The News’ learnt on Tuesday.

The qualifiers are to take place in September and October. Pakistan team has not participated in any international event for around nine months. It was to take part in FIH Pro League in February this year, but the PHF failed to send the team because of financial crisis.

It was also learnt that the PHF high officials have directed the new selection committee led by Olympian Manzoor Junior to inform it of the criteria and selection policy to develop the team keeping in mind the future international competitions.

PHF secretary Olympian Asif Bajwa, when contacted, said that the national selection committee would be fully independent in the selection process. He made it clear that PHF would not interfere in the selection process but wanted to know that the basic criteria and selection policy.

He said that PHF was delighted at successfully organising the national championship and enthusiastic participation of domestic teams. The cycle of domestic hockey has been started though the national hockey championship, he added.

Bajwa said that national championship was the country’s premier hockey tournament and players who did well would be called for the training camp.

He added that the training camp would have 32 to 35 players. Besides the Olympic qualifying rounds, the team is also to participate in the South Asian Games in Nepal later this year.

Pakistan junior team is to participate in the Junior Asia Cup 2019. Pakistan junior hockey has suffered a lot. The country did not participate in the Junior Hockey World Cup in 2016 in India because the host country did not issue visas in time.