Asian Games training camp shuts down due to lack of funds

LAHORE: A couple of months ago, Pakistani athletes won five medals, including a Gold and four Bronze at the Commonwealth Games at Gold Coast Australia.

Now the athletes are fighting to keep their training camp open in order to prepare for the upcoming Asian Games taking place in August this year in Indonesia.

A training camp for wrestling, karate and jujitsu was being held at Lahore, before the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) told the team management that they could no longer keep the camp open due to a shortage of funds.

Medallist Inam Butt, Tayyab Raza and Mohammad Bilal were also a part of the camp.

Butt gave Pakistan their lone gold medal of the tournament in the wrestling event at the games while Raza and Bilal won bronze.

A two-time gold medallist, Butt had previously won a gold medal at the Delhi Commonwealth Games in 2010.

According to Wrestling Federation Secretary Arshad Sattar the closing of the camp three months before the games is unfortunate.

He added that other countries have been spending the last three years preparing for the Asian Games whereas we have closed down our training camp.

Asian Games will take place from August 8 to September 2 in Indonesia.