ISLAMABAD, Nov 5: Alexander Marinov of Bulgaria will coach Pakistani weightlifters for the South Asian Federation (SAF) Games to be held in the Pakistan capital early next year.

“Paperwork is under process for hiring the Bulgarian and we expect to see him on his way to this country soon,” the Director General of Pakistan Sports Board, Brig. Arif Siddiqui, said Wednesday.

The South Asian Federation (SAF) Games will be organised here during March 29-April 7, 2004.

Two South Korean taekwondo coaches as well as a football coach from Tunisia are also being hired to train the Pakistani SAF Games teams in the respective disciplines while a number of other federations of sports figuring in the SAF Games are also to acquire the services of foreign coaches through the joint aegis of PSB and SAF Games Organising Committee.

The SAF Games will feature competitions in 15 disciplines: athletics, boxing, swimming, rowing, squash, badminton, table tennis, kabaddi, volleyball, football, shooting, weightlifting, wrestling, karate and taekwondo.

Marinov had previously been with the Pakistani weightlifters in 2001 before the SAF Games were postponed, for the first time around, in September 2001—barely a fortnight before the Oct 6 opening ceremony.

Upon arrival here, he will take charge of the national weightlifting training camp which got underway at Pakistan Sports Complex last month.

Eight of the initial 16 probables were from Wapda, four from Police and two each from Balochistan and Railways and were selected after the Oct 15-16 National Championship.

However, seven leading lifters of the country were initially unable to attend the camp due to fitness/domestic problems. They included Sajjad Amin Malik and Shujauddin Malik, both from Wapda, who set three and one new national records in the 51st National Championship while others were:

Shakeel Butt of Wapda and Awais Akbar, Khurram Shehzad, Kashif Hanif Butt and Wasif Hanif Butt of Pakistan Railways. —APP