Hockey drafted back into National Games

National sport returns after gold in Asian Games.

LAHORE: Sanity prevailed in the National Games setup after hockey was drafted into the list of disciplines for the 31st edition taking place in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) from December 25.

Pakistan’s national sport was excluded from the list, with the organisers citing security concerns, but a gold-medal performance in the Asian Games prompted a swift move back together with wushu. Football, however, failed to meet a similar fate despite strong protest from the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF).

“Considering the security concerns, we tried to limit the risk by reducing the disciplines,” Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) President General Syed Arif Hasan told a press conference. “We want to place emphasis on the sports and not get bogged down by a chaos.

“However, after much debate on the inclusion of the hockey, football and wushu, it was decided to keep football out in the wake of security issues as football is an outdoor game. The sport also lost out after its unconvincing show in the Asian Games. But hockey made a great impact by winning the gold medal that also helped them qualify for the Olympics so it was an automatic pick for the Games.”

Football’s exclusion blasted by the PFF

The PFF Secretary Ahmed Yar Khan Lodhi has criticised the POA’s decision for excluding football, stressing that these types of decisions ‘will send a negative impression to all those who are associated with the game or want to seek their future in it.’

“Football was snubbed because it is an outdoor game,” said Lodhi. “However, if hockey can be included and provided with security then certainly other sports also have the right to be included in the national mega event.”

Security key to event

Earlier, the POA had decided to exclude 12 outdoor disciplines due to security concerns in K-P. The move was heavily criticised and the POA was advised to move the Games from the province. However, the committee decided to stick with the plan as the Games was already postponed twice.

The K-P Sports Minister Syed Aqil Shah gave a briefing on the security measures to be taken during the games.According to Hasan, law-enforcing agencies will be working together to ensure the smooth conduct of the games in Peshawar.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 4^th, 2010.