Pakistan Awaits Boxing Championships

Compiled by Parvez Fatteh, Founder of http://sportingummah.com, sports@muslimobserver.com

The Pakistani national boxing team, led by Haroon Khan, younger brother of junior welterweight champion of the world Amir Khan, has trained and is ready to take part in the World Boxing Championships scheduled to be held from September 25th through October 8th in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Three Pakistani boxers and three officials will depart from the country’s southern port city of Karachi for Azerbaijan on Thursday. Secretary of the Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF), Akram Khan indicated that Haroon Khan would directly reach Baku from London to join the Pakistani team.

The younger Khan will compete in the 52kg category, Mohammad Waseem in the 49kg category, Syed Mohammad Hussain in the 56kg category and Aamir Khan in the 64kg category. The boxers who qualify for the quarterfinals of this event will qualify for the 2012 London Olympics. The PBF secretary expressed optimism that the four national boxers would get at least a couple of berths in 2012 London Olympics by performing well in the world event.

None of Pakistan’s boxers were able to qualify for the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Prior to that, Pakistan had five fighters – Mehrullah Lassi, Sohail Baloch, Asghar Ali Shah, Faisal Karim and Ahmed Ali Khan- competing in the 2004 Athens Olympics, but none advanced beyond the second round of the competition.

Pakistan won their only Olympic medal in boxing at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul when Syed Hussain Shah brought home the bronze medal in the men’s middleweight division. The 2012 Summer Games in London present a great opportunity for Haroon Khan to win a medal for the country of his heritage, Pakistan, and to shine in front of his adopted country, England.

13-39