LONDON, July 4: A dream long held by squash great Jahangir Khan could be fulfilled in Singapore this week if his sport finally gains official Olympic recognition. Jahangir won 10 British Open titles and six World Opens in a career of unprecedented dominance but an Olympic breakthrough by squash would rank as his proudest achievement.

“If we get it, then forget about my British Opens, forget about my world titles,” the 41-year-old Jahangir said in an interview.

“It would be a great achievement for the sport as a whole.

“I was fortunate to enjoy a magnificent career in squash and the only regret I have is that I never had a chance to compete for an Olympic gold medal.

“If I could help achieve this for the next generation of squash players, it would be my proudest moment,” added Jahangir who, as president of the World Squash Federation (WSF), has led the sport’s bid to join the Games programme.

“It would be a lifelong dream come true for me.”

Squash has been short-listed with golf, rugby, roller sports and karate for possible inclusion at the 2012 Games and could be added to the programme by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Singapore on Friday.

All 28 Olympic sports will face the vote and must win a majority from IOC members to avoid being dropped from the list. If a sport is axed, the IOC executive board will select a replacement from the five applicants.

The sport recommended by the executive board to replace an outgoing sport would first need a two-thirds majority to become an “Olympic sport” and would then need a simple majority in a second vote to be admitted to the 2012 Games programme.

Jahangir believes squash is ideally suited to the Olympics.

“It’s really surprising we haven’t been there before, particularly as we fulfil all the criteria,” he said.

“The sport is all about sheer athleticism. At the highest level, it requires a remarkable combination of power, speed, flexibility, agility and instant reflexes.

“And let’s not forget squash’s trademark – outstanding endurance, both muscular and cardiovascular. Surely the Olympics are principally all about superior athletic performance?

“Plus squash is truly global. It is played in more than 150 countries and is spreading across Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania.

“We have between 15 and 20 million players worldwide while the number of national federations affiliated to the WSF has doubled in the past 15 years to 125.”

Jahangir, widely regarded as the greatest squash player in history, knows all about the challenge of sport, the hard work required to succeed and what it means to shine at the highest level.

In a glittering career that ended in 1993, he was ranked in the world’s top two for a decade, never failing to reach at least the semifinals of any tournament in that period.

While his 10 British Open titles will surely never be eclipsed, perhaps his greatest on-court achievement was staying unbeaten for five years, seven months and one day between 1981 and 1986. Only once was he extended to five games.

The Olympics, however, were always foreign territory for him. While racket sports such as badminton and tennis gained IOC recognition, squash stayed outside the ropes.

Jahangir, possibly more than anyone, knows what it will mean to squash players if their sport gains IOC acceptance in Singapore.

“I have spoken to all our leading players and they are all dying to be there,” he said. “I don’t know which of them will still be around in 2012, but all of them would want to be there, to be part of the Olympics.

“Competing in the Games would be the highest honour and the top priority. It would be the pinnacle of a squash player’s career.”—Reuters