Asghar, Numan confident of golds

Published March 27, 2004

ISLAMABAD, March 26: Asghar Ali Shah and Numan Karim, both having already qualified for this year's Olympics, are oozing confidence ahead of SAF Games starting here next week.

"We are well aware that Indians will pose Pakistan a challenge again but we both are capable to overcome our closest rivals from that country," they said. Altogether, Pakistan's Cuban coach Alvarez aims for at least six gold medals at the 9th SAF Games, out of the 10 weight categories in which the country will be represented.

Besides Asghar and Numan, Pakistan's other prominent gold-medal hopefuls are Haider Ali and Meherullah. Asghar, Pakistan's gold medal contender in 60 kilograms class, said preparations were in full swing for the SAF Games in which Pakistan won three against India's six in the last edition at Kathmandu in September 1999.

"That figure in India's favour may count for nothing when it comes to crunch fights in the ring during this edition", said Numan. "In fact, each one of our boxers in the 10 weight categories will take to the ring with his sights set on a gold medal".

He said it might well be Pakistani pugilists' turn to capture six golds instead of India repeating their Kathmandu tally. At Kathmandu, Ali Haider in flyweight, Shoukat Ali in heavyweight and Shahid Hussain in super heavyweight classes were Pakistan's gold-medallists while Indian gold-medallists were Omar Mohammad Ali (flyweight), Nagangom Dingko Singh (bantamweight), Narendra Singh (lightweight), Sanjit Singh (light welterweight), Jitender Kumar (middleweight) and Gurcharan Singh (light heavyweight). -APP

Opinion

Editorial

Plugging the gap
06 May, 2024

Plugging the gap

IN Pakistan, bias begins at birth for the girl child as discriminatory norms, orthodox attitudes and poverty impede...
Terrains of dread
Updated 06 May, 2024

Terrains of dread

Restored faith in the police is unachievable without political commitment and interprovincial support.
Appointment rules
06 May, 2024

Appointment rules

IT appears that, despite years of wrangling over the issue, the country’s top legal minds remain unable to decide...
Hasty transition
Updated 05 May, 2024

Hasty transition

Ostensibly, the aim is to exert greater control over social media and to gain more power to crack down on activists, dissidents and journalists.
One small step…
05 May, 2024

One small step…

THERE is some good news for the nation from the heavens above. On Friday, Pakistan managed to dispatch a lunar...
Not out of the woods
05 May, 2024

Not out of the woods

PAKISTAN’S economic vitals might be showing some signs of improvement, but the country is not yet out of danger....