The federal government is likely to support 180 sports contingents and officials for the upcoming 19th edition of the Asian Games scheduled to be played in Hangzhou (China) this year in September. Director General Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) Shoaib Khoso chaired the high-level meeting attended by Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) secretary Mohammad Khalid Mehmood, PSB Deputy Director General Muhammad Ibrar, Saeed Akhtar and representatives of different sports federations. During the meeting suggestions from sports federations as well as Pakistan Olympic Association were taken to finalize the Pakistan contingent participation and preparation of 19th Asian Games to be played in Hangzhou (China) from September 23 to October 8.

According to sources, due to financial difficulties, the Pakistan Sports Board is considering supporting Pakistan's contingent of around 180 players and officials in the Asian Games, while the participants of the meeting have suggested that the Pakistan Sports Board should fully support those sports in the Asian Games in which medals can be won. In this regard, Director General of Pakistan Sports Board Shoaib Khoso said that PSB will consider the proposals of POA and sports federations regarding the Asian Games and we will try to provide all possible support to the federation that wins medals in the mega event.  He said that Pakistan Sports Board will also fully support the talented players so that they can shine the name of the country in the Asian Games

”We are at initial stages of gathering information and making adjustments where these are required. Once we gather all information from participating federations, we will be in a better position to see how best we can accommodate different federations,” Shoaib Khoso said. On the other hand the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) Normalization Committee has not only failed to meet the accreditation deadline, but it has also communicated it had no plan to participate in the Asian Games owing to financial constraints. The decision means that the largest 26-member contingent of the football team will not participate in the Games.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP