KARACHI: The Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) has dropped the plan of setting a training camp for national pugilists in Cuba. The camp was meant to prepare players for the Commonwealth and the Asian Games to be held later this year.
The PBF secretary Akram Khan said lack of funds for the 45-day trip forced the federation to cancel the plan.
“We needed around Rs6.5 million for the tour but we did not have enough funds to send the pool of boxers to Cuba”, Khan told The Express Tribune.
The secretary said the federation is now relying on an alternative of holding a joint training camp in the country.
“We will now rely on a joint training camp and have sent invitations to 27 countries for the camp in Karachi,” said Khan adding that the PBF is expecting a positive response from all the countries.
He added that the decision might come out to be a blessing in disguise for the national boxers.
“Our pool of 25 boxers will get valuable tips from the world’s top coaches and it might prove more beneficial for us than the Cuba camp,” added Khan.
Khan said the joint camp will cost around Rs3.5 million and the expense would be borne by the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB).
“We got the PSB’s approval which has appreciated the idea and assured us full support for the camp,” said Khan, while adding that the camp will start early next month after the PBF set July 31 as the deadline for the countries to confirm their participation in the training camp to prepare for the Commonwealth and Asian Games.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 22nd, 2010.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ