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ISLAMABAD The second Islamic Solidarity Games has been postponed for an indefinite period over a possible threat of swine flu.
The games were scheduled to held from Oct 13 to 29 in three Iranian cities of Tehran, Isfahan and Mashhad.
The Games are used as a platform to encourage cooperation among Muslim states. The first edition of which was held in Saudi Arabia four years ago.
The spokesman of the Iranian embassy in Islamabad, Dr Hyder Zabeth, told Dawn on Tuesday, 'The second edition of the games will be held in Iran and there is no change of the venue, however, the decision of the postponement of the event was made at the general body meeting held at the Islamic Solidarity Games Federation (ISGF) headquarters in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.'
He said 'The organisers are yet to finalise the date of the rescheduled event.'
For the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) it was a blessing in disguise as the cash strapped board had recently refused to sponsor around 98 athletes for the Indoor Asian Games scheduled to be held in Vietnam.
'The training camps of several games are already in progress at different locations, while the event has been postponed and was officially communicated to the Federal Sports Ministry by the Iranian embassy,' the newly-appointed spokesman of the PSB, Faik Ali, said.
'The games had been postponed for six months as per the handout of the embassy which conveyed the decision of the Physical Education Organisation of Iran, which has taken the decision of postponement in the backdrop of the spread of swine flu in some of the Islamic countries,' he said.
'A 100-member contingent will be sponsored by the PSB for the Games,' he said. However, the second Islamic Solidarity Games website gives no hint of the fate of the Games despite the announcement by the PSB.
When approached, the general secretary of the Pakistan Olympic Association, Abdul Khaliq Khan, said 'I have just learnt about the news, however, I will speak on the issue after getting confirmation from the ISG organising committee.'
