LAHORE: Pakistani boxing coach and former Olympian Arshad Hussain said boxers from various countries are working to get to the top of their fitness during a camp being held at the Railways Sports Complex here in connection with the preparations for the Paris Olympic Qualifiers. He said he had achieved it.
“Yes, the boxers have achieved maximum fitness and now we are working on improving our skills and speed,” Arshad told The News here on Saturday.
Athletes representing each country will participate in several world qualifying tournaments for the Paris Olympics.
The first world qualifying event will be held in Busto Arsizio, Italy from February 29th to March 12th, and the second world qualifying event will be held in Bangkok from May 23rd to June 3rd.
Last year’s Hangzhou Asian Games also served as a qualifying round for this year’s Paris Games, but no representative player advanced past the quarterfinals.
“Hectic training continues. There was good sunshine today and we also conducted a marathon sparring session in the ring,” Arshad said. Arshad is a very experienced coach and has been part of the Pakistan team for the past few years.
“Skills training is a process and it never ends,” Arshad said, adding that he was very optimistic that better manpower would be prepared for the most important tasks. Arshad also revealed that Sanaullah and Mohammad Qasim were not attending the camp due to illness.
“Currently, there are eight male and six female fighters in the camp. We are scheduled to leave for Italy on February 25. We have already applied for visas,” Arshad said.
However, he said the final batch would be announced a few weeks before departure for Italy.
“The selection committee will decide the final members,” Arshad said. Arshad is also credited with winning several international medals during her impressive career.
Arshad said Zohaib Rashid, the best boxer in the country, is in great form, adding that he is a tireless type of boxer and that is a big plus.
“He is in great shape and has trained more than other players. I think it would be fair to say that his fitness is similar to the Asian Games where he did well, reaching the quarter-finals,” Arshad said. Told.
Arshad feels that touring abroad was a big mistake.
“Yes, we cannot go for overseas training because there is no support from the cordon. You know we are looking for sponsors because we have no money,” Arshad said.
Zohaib Rashid, Mohammad Faheem, Ibrahim, Zeeshan, Azhar, Kamran, Fatima Zehra and Areeba are some of the prominent boxers undergoing training.
Arshad revealed that he fell ill a few days ago and his coach Tariq Sidhuki has not returned to camp yet.