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Arif elected member of CGF sports committee for Asia

By Our Correspondent
September 07, 2019

KARACHI: Pakistan Olympic Association’s (POA) president Lt Gen (retd) Arif Hasan has been elected as member of the sports committee of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) for Asia. He is the first Pakistani to become part of the CGF’s management, the POA said on Friday.

Arif got the portfolio at the General Assembly of the CGF at Kigali, Rwanda. The General Assembly re-elected Dame Louise Martin as its president for a second four-year term. The CGF sports committee acts as an advisory body to the Executive Board on strategic and technical matters related to sport and partnerships with International Federations (IFs) which impact the Commonwealth Games and the broader Commonwealth Sport Movement.

Earlier this year, Arif was unanimously elected the vice-president (South Asian Zone) of the Olympic Council of Asia for the fourth consecutive time. The CGF has been working to bring organisational changes, under Dame Louise Martin DBE to deliver inspirational and innovative Commonwealth Games, built on friendships and to develop a proud heritage supported by a dynamic Commonwealth Sports Cities Network. The aim of the CGF is to foster friendship among the Commonwealth athletes and countries.

The POA said it was implementing the IOC Agenda 2020 steadily. The most significant of POA programmes, supported and funded by the IOC Olympic Solidarity, have already started delivering results as shooter Khalil Akhtar has qualified for the Tokyo Olympics. “We are really hopeful for Saadi Abbas to secure birth in Tokyo Olympics in pursuit of which he is at Tokyo Open Karate 1 Premier League,” the POA added.

Saadi has secured IOC Olympic Solidarity Scholarship. He is also being sponsored by Indus Motors, the POA said. “Our athletes have been performing tremendously despite paucity of resources and patronage they deserve and they will InshaAllah make the nation proud. POA will continue supporting national athletes within its limited resources secured through IOC funding,” it said.