KARACHI – An eight member Sri Lankan boxing squad has confirmed to travel to Pakistan to appear in the Shaheed Benazir Bhutto International boxing which will be played here January 1 to 9 at Benazir Bhutto KPT gymnasium.
An official of the Pakistan Boxing federation on query informed The Nation here Friday that Sri Lankans have accepted the invitation to appear in the competition in which more than twenty five countries had already confirmed entry.
Sri Lankans would be special guest of Pakistani sporting fraternity which had always held the Islanders in high esteem and respect. Sri Lankan cricketers had visited Pakistan regularly and it was on Pakistani soil at Lahore that Sri Lanka won the coveted cricket world cup under the leadership of Arjuna Ranatunga. However in March this year, the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore came under terrorist attack and couple of their cricketer’s sustained injuries.
Despite the trauma that the team underwent Sri Lankans as an expression of solidarity with Pakistani nation had not blamed the Pakistani government or the people of Pakistan to what had happened and had repeatedly voiced their views that they would return to Pakistan as soon as the conditions would allow them.
Indians have also agreed to come here, he added. The process to issue visas to the Indian team, he said, was already on and added hopefully they would get the visa soon.
He said teams will start arriving in the city from December 30. The teams would be lodged at a local hotel.
In the meantime, the international boxing federation has appointed technical delegate and neutral referees and judges for the championships.
The AIBA has Appointed Nieva Embuldeniya from Sri Lanka as a technical delegate for competitions
An official of the Pakistan Boxing federation on query informed The Nation here Friday that Sri Lankans have accepted the invitation to appear in the competition in which more than twenty five countries had already confirmed entry.
Sri Lankans would be special guest of Pakistani sporting fraternity which had always held the Islanders in high esteem and respect. Sri Lankan cricketers had visited Pakistan regularly and it was on Pakistani soil at Lahore that Sri Lanka won the coveted cricket world cup under the leadership of Arjuna Ranatunga. However in March this year, the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore came under terrorist attack and couple of their cricketer’s sustained injuries.
Despite the trauma that the team underwent Sri Lankans as an expression of solidarity with Pakistani nation had not blamed the Pakistani government or the people of Pakistan to what had happened and had repeatedly voiced their views that they would return to Pakistan as soon as the conditions would allow them.
Indians have also agreed to come here, he added. The process to issue visas to the Indian team, he said, was already on and added hopefully they would get the visa soon.
He said teams will start arriving in the city from December 30. The teams would be lodged at a local hotel.
In the meantime, the international boxing federation has appointed technical delegate and neutral referees and judges for the championships.
The AIBA has Appointed Nieva Embuldeniya from Sri Lanka as a technical delegate for competitions
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