ISLAMABAD: While announcing a hectic programme for seniors, men, women and juniors, the president of the Pakistan Volleyball Federation (PVF), Chaudhry Mohammad Yaqoob, on Friday vowed the year 2018 would be a game-changer for the sport in the country. Yaqoob said the target had been set for Pakistan to regain 35th spot in world rankings. Pakistan were 35th some seven years ago but later declined to 50th position.
“Some very talented players have been picked for the youth and junior squads. Most of them are six feet-six inches tall from whom our Iranian coach Iran has great hopes,” Yaqoob said. “Besides the Iranian coach, the PVF will get another foreign coach courtesy the World Volleyball Federation. Soon the coach will arrive in Pakistan to train our junior and youth teams,” he added. He said the PVF had recently organised a Gold Cup Tournament in Kamalia (Nov 29 to Dec 3), adding it would hold the National Championship at POF Wah from Dec 18 to 24. “All the affiliated units, including the newly inducted FATA, would feature in the national event.” He said the National Women’s Championship would also be held in Peshawar in the last week of January 2018. “The first phase of the National Women’s Championship was staged in Lahore on Dec 13 for selecting the national team which would be undergoing training at a camp in Karachi from the second week of January.”
While acknowledging that women players in the past were ignored, the PVF president said now women would get maximum number of chances to exhibit their skills at national and international levels. According to Yaqoob, a training camp would be held next month at Lahore’s National Training and Coaching Centre in order to pick a strong national squad for the International Under-23 Championship. He said a training camp for the seniors would be arranged in Islamabad next month to select a formidable team for the Asian Games being held in Jakarta from August 18 to September 2. Moreover, the PVF president said, national youth and junior training camp was also in progress in Peshawar. He said the junior team would tour Iran, Thailand and China next year, before taking part in the Asian U-20 Championship to be hosted by Bahrain.
Published in Daily Times, December 16th 2017.