Despite being a competitive outfit on the Asian circuit, Pakistan volleyball is suffering from a lack of financial support from the government. A fallout of this has been a lack of international appearances for Pakistan. -Photo by APP

ISLAMABAD The summer itinerary of Pakistan Volleyball Federation is under threat due to lack of sponsors as the federation has failed to prove its case before the federal government for funds.

“We have planned a good summer training session for our senior and junior volleyball players but financial support from the government is key to our successful appearance in the Asian Games,” the president of the volleyball federation Chaudhry Yaqoob told Dawn on Saturday.

The volleyball federation was in dire need of financial injection from the government to gain better regional ranking but lack of a marketing team within the federation and no federal grants have forced the federation officials to limit its base to national tournaments only.

Pakistan had gained better Asian ranking after winning few tournaments and had won a silver medal after losing to India in the South Asian Games held in Bangladesh recently. But despite the improvements, the federation has been unable to get any financial backing from the government. 

He said “There is no support at all but we are still hopeful for a positive reply from both the Sports Ministry and the Pakistan Sports Board -- an institution looking after the promotion of sports.”

The Pakistan volleyball squad, he said, would be featuring in three international events to prepare the team for the 16th Asian Games scheduled to be held in Guangzhou, China from Nov 12 to 27.

The senior squad, he said, would travel to Dubai to test its mettle in Al-Rashid International tournament besides appearing in six-nation volleyball championship to be held in Kazakhstan in July.

“The junior squad will appear in the Asian Junior Championship slated to begin in Thailand while the federation will also organise a national junior championship,” he said.

Chaudhry Yaqoob insisted that they would contact the diplomats of friendly countries for the revival of game.

“All we need is a good exposure for our players and I am quite confident for a far better show from our players,” he claimed.

The federation president added that the training camp for the Asian Games has already started at the Pakistan Sports Complex.