ASTANA: Pakistan’s national taekwondo team arrived in Astana on Tuesday to compete in the Kazakhstan Open International Championship, a G1-ranked event running from August 14-16.

The competition features athletes from 21 nations, including Pakistan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Nepal, UAE, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and a team under the World Taekwondo Refugee flag.

The Pakistani contingent, led by team head Lt. Col Zeeshan Aslam and national head coach Master Yousef Karami, includes athletes Shahzaib Khan, Hamza Omar Saeed, Noman Khan, Abu Bakar Siddique, Kaif Anwar, Arbaz Khan and female competitor Fatemah Zahra.

Lt. Col Aslam expressed confidence, stating the team trained intensively with high spirits.

“Competing during the month of Independence adds to our motivation. Our goal is to win gold for Pakistan.”

Coach Yousef noted valuable joint training sessions with other international teams.

Published in Dawn, August 13th, 2025