Regional hockey academies very soon

KARACHI: The PHF has planned to establish regional academies in all four provinces and a PHF excellence academy in Narowal where two astro turfs are being laid under a big project by the federal government.

A project is under way to make Narowal a sports city where state-of-the-art facilities in various disciplines will be provided by the federal government.

PHF president Khalid Khokhar and secretary Shahbaz Ahmed visited Norwal along with some Olympians examined the prospects of an excellence academy there.

The project has as much as 46 acres of land along the main Narowal-Muridke Road for promoting sports.

Those who accompanied PHF president and secretary included Olympian Khalid Bashir and Khawaja Junaid.

They were informed by Narowal’s elected representative and government officials that best possible sports facilities were being provided in the district in various disciplines, including hockey.  The Narowal district administration informed them that two astro turfs would be laid at the sports city.

The PHF sources said that 30 to 50 players from 14 to 18 years old of age would be selected for regional academies as soon as possible in the cities where good infrastructure was available.

In the first phase, academies will be established in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. Academies in Peshawar and Quetta will be established later.

The players selected for these academies will also get education there. They will stay at hostels and get food and stipends from the PHF.

The best players of these academies will then be transferred to PHF excellence academy which is likely to be established in Narowal.

The academies in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad will start functioning in a couple of months.  The sources said excellence academy in Narowal might take seven to eight months.

The sources said that two astro turfs in Narowal would change the face of the city and PHF would be able to organise international matches there.

A local club’s officials and team members of Narowal also met the PHF high officials during the visit.