Pakistan squads ready for Asian Games

Squads from nine disciplines from Pakistan will attend the opening ceremony of the 20th Asian Games, which will be held on September 19 at 2pm PST. “Only those athletes have been invited to the opening ceremony who are close to the venue hosting it,” a well-placed source told The Express Tribune. This correspondent understands that badminton, cricket (women), kabaddi, martial arts, rowing, fencing, squash, table tennis and wushu will attend the opening ceremony of the quadrennial spectacle. Sources said that Japan has been hit by heavy rains and rowing competitions have also been rescheduled. Pakistan will be featuring in 23 sports disciplines at these Games. So far, squads from kabaddi, equestrian, wushu, triathlon, hockey, cricket (women), swimming, some shooters and a few boxers have proceeded to Tokyo. The athletes are being sent according to the schedule of their respective disciplines. As many as seven Pakistan squads will be housed on the cruise ship that has arrived in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, to provide accommodation to visiting athletes who are assembling for the 20th Asian Games, pencilled in for September 19 to October 4. According to the source, squads from kabaddi, squash, table tennis, rowing, mixed martial arts, wushu and wrestling will stay on the cruise ship. The Italian cruise ship Costa Serena docked in Nagoya, where the Games are taking place until October 4. Around 4,000 athletes and officials will be housed on the ship, which is almost 300 metres long, weighs over 100,000 tonnes and has 1,500 cabins. More than 17,000 athletes and officials are expected at the Games, which officially open on Saturday, a bigger number than at the Olympics. Participants will also stay in wooden container-style huts and standard hotel rooms in a bid to cut costs. Pakistan’s contingent chef de mission Fatima Lakhani, who is also the senior vice-president of the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA), will arrive in Japan on Thursday, a source said. Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) Secretary General Khalid Mehmood is also expected to land by Thursday. Dr Asad Abbas, who will be acting as contingent doctor, also left on Wednesday.