PTF sending 10 kyorugi fighters to Iran

KARACHI: Pakistan Taekwondo Federation (PTF) is set to send a solid squad of kyorugi to Iran for around two and a half weeks training in connection with preparation for the Asian Championship and the Islamic Games.

“Yes, we are going to send around ten fighters of Kyorugi to Tehran on Wednesday for training there for 14 to 18 days,” PTF president Lt Col (retd) Wasim Ahmed told ‘The News’ on Monday.

“We have already sent our Iranian coach Yousef Karami to Tehran to make arrangements. The squad will go to Zahedan by road from Quetta and from there it will fly for Tehran,” Wasim said.

PTF has recently hired the services of former world champion and 2004 Athens Olympics bronze medallist Yousef Karami as a coach. Wasim said that the national kyorugi pool is in good hands as Yousef has been a top-level fighter and knows exactly how to prepare the lot.

He said after the squad returns home the fighters will also get an opportunity to flex their muscles in the National Championship to be held in Islamabad from June 9-13.

“Then we will send our squad to Korea for the 25th Asian Championship slated to be held in Chuncheon city of Gangwon province from June 24-27. And immediately after that our players will also get the opportunity to feature in the Chuncheon Korea Open pencilled in for June 29-30,” the official said.

“The Iran and Korea tours will cost us around Rs20 million as air-fare is very high these days because of the devaluation of the currency,” Wasim said. “But I hope the government will help us. If despite all this we are unable to win a medal in the Islamic Games then it will be a huge blow for us and utter disappointment for me especially,” the official said.

PTF plans to field up to five fighters in the Asian Championship in poomsae and seven or eight fighters in kyorugi. Poomsae is not included in the Islamic Games. PTF has hired the services of two foreign coaches. Yousef is training kyorugi fighters while a Korean coach is conducting the camp of the poomsae lot.

Yousef’s services have been hired through Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) while the Korean coach is being paid by the Korean embassy in Pakistan. Pakistan’s squad is currently training in Islamabad to prepare for the Islamic Games slated to be held in Konya, Turkey, from August 9-18.

The squad is yet to be finalsied.

“Yes, the squad has not yet been finalised. The fighters are training at the Liaquat Gymnasium in Islamabad. Although it’s hot here we don’t have any issue as we are training in the basement of the gymnasium which is not that hot,” said Wasim, who will go to Korea to attend the Asian Taekwondo Union (ATU) General Assembly meeting to be held in Chuncheon on June 21-22.

Pakistan has already submitted bids for hosting the 5th Asian Open and the Asian Olympic qualifying round for 2024 Paris Olympics.

“During the ATU General Assembly there will be a presentation and we hope that we will be given the hosting rights of these events. It will be a great breakthrough and an opportunity for our talented fighters to make it to the 2024 Paris Olympics while fighting on their home soil,” Wasim said. If Pakistan won the Olympics qualifiers hosting bid then the event would likely be held some time from February to April next year in Islamabad.

If Pakistan were given the 5th Asian Open hosting rights it would likely be held at the end of next year. The PTF is already working on hosting the 4th Asian Open to be held in the federal capital in October.