PHF’s president, Brig Khalid Sajjad Khokhar, has been elected vice president of AHF unopposed at a recent meeting in Tokyo.
According to Khalid Khokhar world hockey organizers acknowledged the services of Pakistan in the world of hockey. AHF awarded Pakistan’s great sports organisor late Noor Khan, who was the president of PHF and made numerous changes to the promotion of hockey. He introduced a couple of internationally acclaimed hockey events.
He said that PHF told AHF that Pakistan has successfully organized World Hockey XI series, hockey-9 event for which 10 foreign goalkeepers belonging to Belgium and Argentina visited Pakistan , Pakistan is a safe country for international hockey events, “he said.
He said it would be the FIH and AHF, Polish hockey team would visit Pakistan in April for one week during which it would play at least four matches.
The PHF president mentioned that Pakistan’s national senior team would not play against them. “We are passing through a reconstruction period. All senior players have been excluded. PHF has decided to develop separate teams from among the players who have attended training camps of Pakistan national and junior teams.
He said that the coaches of these teams would be different so that their coaching standard and performance could be measured against each other.
He added that the details of the Polish team tour through Pakistan and the names of the likely teams, their coaches and other staff would be announced soon.
Khokhar mentioned that all members of four development squads would be under 24 years old.
The PHF president said another big hit for Pakistan hockey is the allotment of a hockey 5 event that would involve four Asian countries.
The PHF organized the Hockey 5 event in Karachi with the help of the Pakistan Navy, which is building a lawn specifically for hockey 5 competitions in the Karsaz region.
The PHF president said the role of the Pakistani Navy was important for the promotion and progress of the national match as the Pakistani Navy organized an international hockey 5 event following the successful completion of national hockey events. The four Asian country names will be announced by AHF.
The PHF president said he and his secretary met Shahbaz Ahmed Thierry Weil, Chief Executive Officer of FIH, at the meeting of the AHF. “We informed him of the conditions that Pakistan is currently facing, which is why we did not participate in the FIH Pro League,” he said.
“The senior official of FIH has listened to our point of view with care, telling us that if the meeting of the FIH board meeting is to take place in mid-March, we should try to convince other members of the board. He promised that he would do everything he could to support Pakistan, “Khokhar said.
He said that PHF would name the 65th National Hockey Championship after the great organizer of the Pakistani ice hockey master Air Marshall Noor Khan. The championship will be organized after the Polish team tour, he said.
The PHF president said PHF, despite many hurdles, was able to prepare a lot of talented and young players in the country. “They are our hope. Our domestic hockey was also strengthened by the planning of the PHF, as several domestic teams were formed. Some large institutions are ready to develop hockey academies in the country, details of which would be announced in the coming days, “he said.
