PSF unveils Vision 2011 plan to produce world champion

KARACHI - The Pakistan Squash Federation has decided to dedicate the under construction Rawalpindi Squash Complex in the name of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, the senior vice president of the PSF Air Vice Marshal Asim Suleman said here on Saturday.
In his first interaction with the local sports journalists last evening at the PAF Museum, he said that the Rawalpindi squash facility which will be the most modern is one of over a dozen similar planned squash complexes that were building as part of the PSF's Vision 2011 Plan, aimed at producing a world champion.
Some of the planned complexes were already there, some of them were near completion and some under planning stage, he added. Besides these complexes, he said Centre of Excellence would be set up at Islamabad where talented players would be admitted and trained.
He said the vision would be implemented in three phases. One of the phase included development of infrastructure programme under which complexes would be build at district level. There would be human resource development programme under which technical officials would be trained and groomed. Coaches would be provided at all the centers for giving training to the youngsters.
He said close to around 500 players mostly youngster's daily visit complex run or raised by the PSF in Peshawar, Lahore and Quetta to play and get training. The PSF sponsored complex at Karachi located at the local NSTCC would soon be commissioned, he added.
He said the PSF annually got Rs 1.6 million as aid against its total financial requirement of around Rs 50 million. The PSF raised necessary funds through sponsorship.
He said his claim that the PSF would be able to raise a world champion by the end of 2011 was neither preposterous nor too bold but was down right pragmatic and within reach.
He said during the past few years squash in the country was slowly but surely showing an upward trend. Pakistan team's victory in the World Junior Championship itself was a good evidence to support his statement, he added.
He said there were a number of outstanding junior players and among them are two exceptionally gifted players who had shown dedication and a will to learn and rise. He said the PSF was pinning hope on those two. He said he would not name the two boys because it might put them under pressure but those two were the ones on which the PSF was depending to emerge as future world champion.