KARACHI: Pakistan’s only Olympic medallist Hussain Shah said while country needs a strong administrator to run the boxing affairs, he did not see a single personality who can lead the sport into right direction.
'The Pakistani boxers need exposure but they need to be controlled. For that purpose, we need a personality like Major (Abdul) Rasheed who was a strict disciplinarian. But frankly, I don’t see any personality who can match him,' the 1988 Seoul Olympic bronze medallist told Dawn.com on Monday.
While Pakistan won several medals under the former president of Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) Anwar Chowdhry, a sharp decline was seen after his ouster as International Boxing Association (AIBA) chief in 2006.
Chowdhry had been blamed by several foreign boxing officials for manipulating results at international events in favour of Pakistani boxers, using his influence as AIBA president.
Hussain, who has been specially invited as a guest by Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) for ongoing Benazir international boxing tournament, said the national boxers should be sent abroad for training tours.
'But they (the boxers) should be sent to places where they cannot indulge in negative activities. Russia, Uzbekistan and other Central Asian States are ideally place where fighters can train in isolation and don’t have time to go astray,' said the former middleweight.
Hussain, however, rejected the idea of sending boxers to Cuba, saying the environment in the country might lead them to get involved in other activities rather than focusing on their game.
'Cuba is not an ideal place for training. I can say this because of my personal experiences as a boxer in the past.'
Interestingly, Pakistan coach Francisco Hernandez Roldan always underscored the need to send the boxers to Cuba for training.
Hussain emphasised the need of having more tournaments at home for the promotion of sport in the country.
When asked whether international tournaments where rules were being violated blatantly would serve the purpose of promoting the game in Pakistan, the Olympian said tournaments at home could be the only way to popularise boxing.
'I must say more tournaments should be held and the boxers should be sent on training tours abroad. But one thing I must also say that the Pakistan boxers should avoid using drugs. I have heard and read reports about Pakistani boxers being caught for using drugs. These incidents bring bad name to the country, while they ruin boxer’s careers,' said Hussain.
Hussain, who has been living in Japan as professional boxing coach, said he had not received the two 80 square yards plots he was awarded after he won the Olympic bronze.
'I was awarded the plots after I won the bronze in 1988. I have submitted money but when I went to prepare the documents, I found that the lands had already been allotted to another person. I will really appreciate if the government takes action and helps me in acquiring the land.'
'The Pakistani boxers need exposure but they need to be controlled. For that purpose, we need a personality like Major (Abdul) Rasheed who was a strict disciplinarian. But frankly, I don’t see any personality who can match him,' the 1988 Seoul Olympic bronze medallist told Dawn.com on Monday.
While Pakistan won several medals under the former president of Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) Anwar Chowdhry, a sharp decline was seen after his ouster as International Boxing Association (AIBA) chief in 2006.
Chowdhry had been blamed by several foreign boxing officials for manipulating results at international events in favour of Pakistani boxers, using his influence as AIBA president.
Hussain, who has been specially invited as a guest by Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) for ongoing Benazir international boxing tournament, said the national boxers should be sent abroad for training tours.
'But they (the boxers) should be sent to places where they cannot indulge in negative activities. Russia, Uzbekistan and other Central Asian States are ideally place where fighters can train in isolation and don’t have time to go astray,' said the former middleweight.
Hussain, however, rejected the idea of sending boxers to Cuba, saying the environment in the country might lead them to get involved in other activities rather than focusing on their game.
'Cuba is not an ideal place for training. I can say this because of my personal experiences as a boxer in the past.'
Interestingly, Pakistan coach Francisco Hernandez Roldan always underscored the need to send the boxers to Cuba for training.
Hussain emphasised the need of having more tournaments at home for the promotion of sport in the country.
When asked whether international tournaments where rules were being violated blatantly would serve the purpose of promoting the game in Pakistan, the Olympian said tournaments at home could be the only way to popularise boxing.
'I must say more tournaments should be held and the boxers should be sent on training tours abroad. But one thing I must also say that the Pakistan boxers should avoid using drugs. I have heard and read reports about Pakistani boxers being caught for using drugs. These incidents bring bad name to the country, while they ruin boxer’s careers,' said Hussain.
Hussain, who has been living in Japan as professional boxing coach, said he had not received the two 80 square yards plots he was awarded after he won the Olympic bronze.
'I was awarded the plots after I won the bronze in 1988. I have submitted money but when I went to prepare the documents, I found that the lands had already been allotted to another person. I will really appreciate if the government takes action and helps me in acquiring the land.'
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