LAHORE: After a detailed discussion over the new amendments to the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) constitution the government is reportedly introducing to control the affairs of the national sports federations, a meeting of the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) general council on Monday resolved to reject all such amendments, considering them against the IOC Charter and an agreement which the government signed with the IOC in 2015.

The 120-member general council meeting which many heads of the national sports federations attended via Zoom, POA president retired Lt Gen Syed Arif Hasan informed the members that the federal government had reportedly introduced new amendments to its constitution according to which it will have its say in the federations’ elections, holding the players’ trials for their participation in foreign events and the teams going abroad had to receive NOC from the government.

The POA kept national media away from the meeting as no briefing was organised after the meeting. It is learnt that though the general body of the POA had rejected all such reported amendments, it decided that it would not oppose the government on this.

Instead, the national federations would like to move with the government under the Lausanne agreement which the government signed with the IOC in 2015.

Showing their concern, some members said on many occasions in the past the government faced defeat as a result of the clash with the constitutions of the international sports bodies and recently, the government had bowed once again to FIFA as now it was ready to vacate the FIFA House.

In 2015, they said, the government had narrowly escaped IOC ban but it is still following the same policies which may again make the global Olympic body ban Pakistan.

Meanwhile, it is learnt that the POA had instructed all those national federations whose players were to appear in the 2022 Asian Games, to submit a stamp paper ensuring that they would send their team, even if the government did not support them financially.

The House was informed that the government did not support a 26-year-old Pakistan skier named Mohammad Karim, who is currently in China to participate in the Winter Olympics being held in Beijing from Feb 4 to 20.

The House was informed that a four-member delegation was necessary even for one skier and the POA arranged their visit after the government did not extend any support for Karim, who hails from Gilgit-Baltistan.

Prime Minister Imran Khan, it may be mentioned here, is also going to Beijing to show solidarity with China as some countries have boycotted the games over alleged human rights violations in the country. However, the government still did not give any worthwhile support to Karim in order to encourage him.

Published in Dawn, February 1st, 2022