July 26, 2008	Saturday	Rajab 22, 1429

LAHORE, July 25: The Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) will announce incentive package for its players on putting up good performance in the Beijing Olympics.

The package will be unveiled at an official dinner which will be hosted in Islamabad on Wednesday on the eve of the Pakistan contingent’s departure to China.

PHF sources said here on Friday that the federation was going to announce attractive cash incentives to inspire the team to put up a good show in Beijing.

If the team wins the title, each player will get a reward of Rs1.5 million, and if the team succeeds in reaching the semi-finals, each member will get 1,000cc car.

“We want to acknowledge every good performance and that is why we will offer cash prize of $US300 to each player on winning the pool matches,” the sources said.

“It has become a common practice to reward players for their achievements and we are following it to improve the performance of our hockey players who are less privileged than cricketers,” they added.

It is learnt that the newly-appointed PHF secretary, Asif Bajwa, has taken the team members into confidence on the package.

“The incentives are not limited to the Olympics. We will reward our team whenever it produces good results,” Bajwa, a former Olympian, said.

The PHF secretary also increased the daily allowance of players from Rs500 to Rs800.

Pakistan captain Zeeshan Ashraf has also welcomed the package and said that the players are delighted to learn about the hefty cash prizes.

“I am confident that the team will come up to the country’s expectations and the cash rewards will be an added attraction for the players to do better,” he said.

“The PHF has shown a good gesture and we value their efforts to motivate the team to exhibit encouraging performance,” he concluded.—APP