Islamabad: Pakistan’s preparations for the Hockey Nations Cup, which will begin in Gniezno (Poland) on May 31, may be affected by the delay in issuing Dutch visas.
The Pakistan team was booked to travel to Amsterdam on May 20, but due to undue delay in visa issuance by the Dutch Embassy in Islamabad, the touring team will not be able to go to start the training camp today (Monday). planned.
However, the embassy has promised to speed up the formalities, with the possibility of preparing travel documents by Monday looking remote. In that case, we will not be able to start the training as planned (May 22) in Amsterdam,” he said.
A source said efforts were being made to secure visas ahead of the team’s departure on Monday.
When it comes to European touring countries, the embassy in Pakistan did not cooperate in issuing visas to Pakistani athletes in a timely manner, knowing full well that most hockey players usually play in European leagues and there are strict measures in place for players. and officials. However, the squad members will return after the training camp in the Netherlands and the Nations Challenge Cup in Poland.
Worse, the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) in Pakistan has no relationship with the embassy (despite offering its facilities to the embassy several times) to help the team.
Recently, the Dutch hockey club traveled to Pakistan for some matches. Hockey authorities and PSB have extended all possible assistance to the tourists to make their journey smooth and hassle-free. However, so far there is uncertainty about whether the Pakistan team will arrive in time for the crucial training camp in the Netherlands, which also includes a one-off Test against the host national team.
Oltmans is already in the Netherlands making final arrangements for the training camp. The team’s head coach has proposed a ten-day training session starting May 31 to build momentum for the Nations Challenge Cup.
Speaking to The News recently, Oltmans said that the trophy is very important for the future of Pakistan hockey.
Oltmans also shared the results of the talks with Dutch hockey and revealed that the team has agreed to play against Pakistan in a one-off test during the training session in the Netherlands.
“Good progress.
The head coach named France as the main challenge for Pakistan in their quest to win the trophy.
In a special order from the Prime Minister, the federal government has allocated 59 million dollars for a training camp in the Netherl
