Ali Ahmed
Lahore (November 26, 2021):-Ranking cannot be improved without participating in the international hockey events, which requires resources, as national game has always had government patronage which won awards at international level, Secretary General, Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) Olympian Asif Bajwa said this while talking to media at Lahore Press Club on Friday.
Asif Bajwa, who was part of 1994 Sydney World Cup gold medalist and Pride of Performance Olympian, further said, “Hockey is one of the Olympic amateur sports and amateur sports are supported by governments or institutions around the world. We are 3 times Olympic champion, 4 times world champion as well as Asian Games, Champions Trophy, Pakistan has made a name for itself and ruled in all over the hockey world. Pakistan Hockey has always had government patronage during the hay-days of hockey. Owing to non-participation in the pro-league made matters worse and the Pakistan team downed 13th to 17th position in the international rankings, “he further said.
Secretary General PHF Asif Bajwa further said that other factors including the epidemic situation hindered the development of the national game and our teams could not get international exposure. “Now, the things have started to get better, Pakistan junior team is joining an international event like Junior World Hockey after eight years. He said that senior and junior teams couldn’t play at international level for more than two and a half years. PHF has been conducting training camps at the domestic level. Ranking cannot be improved without participating in international events. The annual budget of hockey in the neighboring country is 100 times more than our budget. We are lacking the finance too, “he concluded.
