TANGERANG: A 16-member taekwondo squad of Pakistan has arrived in Indonesia on Monday to participate in the sixth Asian Open Kyorugi Taekwondo Championship played in Tangerang.

The event will commence on Tuesday and will conclude on Friday at the Indore Stadium Sports Center. More than 275 athletes from India, Uzbe­kistan, Tajikistan, Philip­pines, Malaysia, Nepal and the host Indonesia will be in action.

Among the male players of the national squad are Haroon Khan (-58 kg), Numan Khan (-63 kg), Saud Alam (-63 kg), Mohammad Arbaz Khan (-68 kg), Mazhar Abbas (-80 kg), Ikhtsham-ul-Haq (-87 kg) and Hamza Omar Saeed (+87 kg) ) while the names of Noor Rahman (-57 kg), Maleeha Ali (-73 kg), and Manisha Ali (+73 kg ) are included in the women’s team.

Lt Col Zeeshan Aslam is the head of the team, master Yusuf Karami is the head coach, Syed Sadaqat Hussain is manager and Faisal Nadeem Butt is the physio of the team.

Hamza Saeed, who will participate in the +87 kg category in the event, has said that a lot of preparation has been done for the championship.

“During the event, there will also be an opportunity to discuss with our contemporaries and professional coaches from other countries, which will be beneficial for us in the future,” Hamza said.

Meanwhile, Noor said that she will not take any fight lightly and present good news to the nation by winning medals for the country.

Published in Dawn, October 15th, 2024