LUCKNOW: The International Hockey Federation (FIH) invited the Malaysian junior men’s team to take part in the Uttar Pradesh Hockey Junior World Cup Men, Lucknow 2016, being held in India from 8 to 18 December.
The FIH which is now headed by India’s Narinder Batra officially withdrew Pakistan’s invitation to the event.
“FIH regrets that Pakistan’s men’s junior team will not be able to take part in this year’s Uttar Pradesh Hockey Junior World Cup even though they had officially qualified. FIH’s decision follows considerable discussions with the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) and requests for confirmation that they had the necessary arrangements in place to be able
to participate in the event.” said a statement released by FIH.
The federation claimed that visas had been applied for after the official deadline and no accommodation was confirmed within the set deadlines.
“Despite a number of correspondence and reminders, the PHF was not able to show that their team would be able to travel to Lucknow for the event which begins in only a few days’ time.With the event starting in only a few days’ time, today was the last possibility for FIH to ensure the quality of the event, with a full complement of 16 teams playing in Lucknow.” reads the FIH statement.
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