0
From rise to fall ... like the other Olympic sports, athletics in Pakistan has also nosedived. The abatement continues and our athletes come among those who also ran. Today we can only cherish our golden past during which our athletes not only made their mark but also ruled in Asia.
Our sprinter, Subedar Abdul Khaliq, was twice declared the ‘Fastest Man in Asia’ at the 1954 and 1958 Asian Games held at Manila and Tokyo, respectively. Hon Capt Nawaz won back-to-back gold medals in javelin throw (1954, 1958), Sharif Butt and Mirza Khan got gold in the 200m and 400m hurdles in 1954. Hon Capt Ghulam Raziq picked up two golds in 110m hurdles at the 1958 and 1966 Asian Games and Mubarak Shah excelled in long distance, claiming two successive golds in 3,000m steeplechase (1958, 1962) and one in 5,000m (1962).
Of course, these are all apart from the couple of other gold, silver and bronze medals which came through sheer hard work and dedication. Most of the medal winners were soldiers from Army background. Here one should not forget the role of the then sports administrator, Brig Rodham, who kept the athletes on their toes.
The last gold Pakistan won in athletics at the Asian Games was at Beijing in 1990, some 23 years back, through the efforts of policeman Ghulam Abbas (400m hurdles).
Athletics and Army are synonymous in Pakistan and those who matter should analyse the reasons for the constant decline in the performance of athletes here. It would be wise to set a high qualifying standard.
Athletes other than those from Army background face the Herculean task to don the national colours. They require exemplary fitness and endurance to win over a soldier on the field. For quite some time, Wapda has started making waves by dominating the women’s competition.
The civilian athletes, including women, who have talent find it difficult to concentrate on training. In the absence of employment opportunities, they face hardships to make ends meet, what to speak about nutrition!
But sprinter Naseem Hameed, who comes from an underprivileged background in Karachi, remained focused on her training under coach Mohammad Talib before joining Army and eventually winning the South Asian Games sprint queen title at Dhaka in 2010. This was an exception.
Today, one rarely hears or reads about athletic competition except for the National Athletic Championship or the National Games. Previously, athletic meets used to take place frequently all over the country. For instance, take the example of Karachi where the athletes remained busy going through one competition after the other round the year. A fierce and healthy competition used to take place between two clubs — Olympian and Asian — until the late 1970s. A group of former athletes including former internationals Syed Abid Hussain, Masroor Ali Khan, Iftikhar Hussain, Arshad Saleem to name a few ran the Olympian Club while Mehmood Sheikh used to finance the Asian Club. Inter-School, Inter-Collegiate, Karachi Athletic Championship, Pakistan Day and Independence Day meets, which were regular features. Unfortunately, it has all been done away with.
Similarly, the Bhutto Youth Festival for under-20 sportsmen was organised at Islamabad’s Pindora Stadium in 1976. Staged in five disciplines — athletics, hockey, basketball, football and volleyball — it was an excellent effort. Since then, the PPP-led government have returned to power thrice but failed to revive it. Hockey great Hasan Sardar also featured in the said festival. Teams of the four provinces and Azad Kashmir competed in the events.“If revived, it can unearth talent and produce at least 30 to 40 per cent of the desired results,” says Karachi Port Trust’s Manager Sports, Shah Naeem Zafar, who also participated in the athletic event of the Bhutto Youth Festival. He has been advocating merging the ministries of Sports and Education to achieve the goal.
Inflation, lack of employment and abolition of the sports quota in colleges and professional universities are some of the vital factors contributing in the downfall of sports in general and athletics in particular. Sincere efforts are required to arrest the decline.
The writer is a member of staff.
