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KARACHI Pakistan boxing coach Francisco Hernandez Roldan expects only one gold medal at the South Asian Games where he believes India will be the toughest rivals and the favourites in the boxing competitions.
The Cuban, however, chose to keep the name of the Pakistani boxer and even the weight category in which there is a chance of winning the gold, a secret.
I can't disclose who can or will win the gold medal at the South Asian Games. But I am sure that we will at least win one gold. I don't know who my boxers will face as it depends on the draw, but if we consider the credentials, then no doubt India is the favourite, Roldan said in an exclusive interview with Dawn.com at the training camp.
The six Pakistan boxers to fight at the games will be light-flyweight Nadir Baloch, flyweight Mohammed Waseem, bantamweight Naimatullah, featherweight Abid Ali, lightweight Adnan Hussain and light-welterweight Amir Khan.
The coach had reasons for considering India as the favourites as they have been doing remarkably well in the international boxing for quite some time and even won their first-ever Olympic boxing medal when Vijender Kumar bagged the middleweight bronze at 2008 Beijing Games.
They (India) have won the bronze medal at the Olympics. They are in the world ranking and they have a steady Cuban coach since 1992 which makes them the strongest side in the boxing competitions of the games, said the coach.
Roldan said there were at least 44 Indian boxers available for the international competitions which makes India a formidable side. The South Asian Games started on Friday in the Bangladeshi capital city of Dhaka.
But it is not only India the Pakistani coach considers a formidable challenge. Roldan is also cautious about the Sri Lankans who might give their opponents a tough time at the games.
Both India and Sri Lanka regularly train in Cuba for one or two months in a year. Besides, Sri Lanka also has the services of Cuban coaches for the last 10 or 12 years which gives them an edge. They (India and Sri Lanka) will be the greatest challenge at the games.
Asked why Pakistan could not be considered a powerhouse at the South Asian Games since it also had Cuban coaches for over 10 years, Roldan said lack of experience of Pakistani boxers was the major reason.
Pakistan does have Cuban coaches for quite a long time but this team is very, very young, and of course inexperienced. They need more international exposure and training tours. If we calculate, the average age of our boxers is just 19. They need time and exposure to groom.
According to Roldan, Nadir, Naimatullah, and Abid are 19 years old, while Amir is just 18.
About light-flyweight Mohib Bacha, who won the gold at the Benazir international tournament in Karachi last month, the coach said he was dropped as the names of the boxers had already been finalized.
It was necessary to submit the entries (to the Pakistan Olympic Association) early. And when the names were finalized, Mohib was not as good as Nadir was. So Nadir will be fighting in light-flyweight in Dhaka, he explained.
Nevertheless, Roldan does not consider South Asian Games just a sparring session for the bigger events such as Delhi Commonwealth Games in October and Guangzhou Asian Games in November. The coach says he will be taking the South Asian Games as seriously as the forthcoming events.
The South Asian Games will not be a build-up to the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games. For me, it is a very important event where we should give our best to win medals.'
Roldan said he would suggest to the Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) to send the national pugilists to Cuba on a two-month training tour in June and July.
Pakistan will also take part in the Commonwealth championships in March in India. And Mohib will also be coming with us this time. After the championships, I will ask the PBF to send the boxers to Cuba for training, said the coach.
As Roldan believes the present squad has not taken a final shape, there will be changes for the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.
The squad leaves for Bangladesh on Tuesday.
