PAKISTAN’S performance at the recently concluded Asian Games in Jakarta was disappointing. The sorry state of affairs of sports in Pakistan can be judged from the fact that the country’s 358-member contingent managed to win just four bronze medals, finishing lower on the medal table than entities like Macau whose population is 0.2 per cent of that of Pakistan.

The only highlight of the event was the bronze medal won by 19-year-old karateka Nargis. Belonging to the Hazara community in Quetta, she brought home Pakistan’s first ever medal in Asian Games karate competitions.

Not too surprisingly, the hockey team failed to win a medal, losing in the semi-finals to Japan. By failing to win a gold medal, the hockey team missed out on a chance to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

This disappointing show has exposed the level of preparedness of the athletes. They had four years to train for the event and yet they failed to live up to the nation’s expectations.

Pakistan Olympic Association chief Syed Arif Hasan has been at the top post of the POA since 2004, yet Pakistan has not won a single Olympic medal in his tenure. The bitter truth is that Pakistan hasn’t won an Olympic medal since 1992.

The need of the hour is to inspire confidence among sportspersons in the country. It is expected that the new government led by Prime Minister Imran Khan, a former sportsman himself, will take measures to resurrect sports in the country.

Muneeb Faisal
Lahore

Published in Dawn, September 19th, 2018