Asian Senior Judo Championship: Pakistan set to depart for Kuwait on May 10

We are looking to get more international exposure, says Karamat

KARACHI: Pakistan will compete at the 2015 Asian Senior Judo Championship in Kuwait in hopes of attaining international exposure before participating at the Punjab Sports Festival International Judo tournament in Lahore.

National athlete Karamat Butt, part of the five male, two female team set to depart on May 10, believes that the event can be a platform for Pakistan to prove their talent even further, as the country is already improving among South Asian nations. “We’ve already emerged as a powerhouse in South Asia,” Karamat, who will be competing in the -81kg category, told The Express Tribune. “In the last three years, I know I’ve improved too. From just winning a silver medal at the South Asian Championship, I’ve become the gold medallist [last year] now too.”

Karamat is practising in Islamabad at the national camp with other athletes under Iranian coach Sajjad Kazemi.

He said that although Kazemi has been useful, it is his desire to train abroad as well. “Kazemi has delivered results for us in the last three years, but it’s not enough. We need to go abroad to practise with foreign athletes to understand our weaknesses better.”

The national judoka said that his objective was not only to win a medal in Kuwait, but also come back home and win against India  in Lahore.

Commonwealth Games 2015 silver medallist Shah Hussain Shah is also expected to join the team in Kuwait. 

Published in The Express Tribune, May 5^th,  2015.

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