KARACHI, 16 February 2007 — Pakistan and other leading hockey-playing nations of Asia have been snubbed by the organizers of the two major international tournaments in Europe this year.
Organizers of the Hamburg Masters in Germany and Rabo Trophy in Holland have decided against sending invitations to any Asian team for the 2007 editions of the events to be held this summer. They have instead opted for teams from Europe, a continent that has replaced Asia as the world’s hockey powerhouse during the last couple of decades.
Pakistan have been regularly competing in both the European events in recent years while at times Asian Games champions Korea and India have also featured in them.
“This year we have not received any invitation for either the Hamburg Masters or Rabo Trophy,” Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) secretary Akhtar-ul-Islam told Arab News on Wednesday.
“We have been told that no Asian side has been invited for the tournament which this year would only have European teams,” added the former Olympian.
The decision to restrict the Hamburg Masters and Rabo Trophy to just European teams could have been a result of the falling standard of hockey in Asia.
Currently the top three of the four teams in international hockey are from Europe. Germany are the World Cup champions while Holland and Spain are also regarded among major powers in international hockey. Olympic champions Australia are the only non-European team to have a major hockey crown in recent times. Record four-time World Cup champions Pakistan have been experiencing a slump since winning their last world crown in 1994 while India have been unable to claim any major international since the Moscow Olympic triumph in 1980.
However, Akhtar said that the decision of the Hamburg Masters and Rabo Trophy organizers to restrict the events to European teams may have been caused by financial constraints.“I believe for the event’s organizers, having just European teams may be a cheaper option,” said Akhtar.
Whatever the reason, the snub has left the PHF looking for options elsewhere for its team’s buildup for this year’s Champions Trophy to be held in Lahore in December.
Pakistan had included the Hamburg Masters and the Rabo Trophy in their thin international schedule and were hoping that their team would get some competitive matches in Europe ahead of the Champions Trophy where Pakistan would be looking for their first title in 13 years.
“We had assumed that our team would be invited for the two events but now there are not many options for us,” he said.
Akhtar said that the PHF is now trying to confirm a series of test matches against top European teams this summer.
“We have written to Germany, Holland, Spain and England for test matches during June and July and hopefully some games would be confirmed soon,” he said.
Pakistan have not featured in any international event since last December’s Asian Games in Doha and their next assignment is the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in Ipoh, Malaysia in May.
