Pakistan will host the qualifying tournament for Olympic hockey in 2024

Pakistan on Monday received the rights to host a major event by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) after a gap of 19 years.

Lahore will be the venue for an eight-nation qualifying competition for the 2024 Olympic Games from Jan 13-21.

The Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) announced that this will be the first big international hockey event in Pakistan since the 2004 Champions Trophy. The country also hosted the 1990 World Cup in Lahore.

PHF secretary Haider Hussain expressed his happiness at Pakistan getting the chance to host an Olympic qualifying tournament and said that it would help revive hockey in the country by drawing a huge crowd.

The PHF official said that the qualifying round was very important for bringing back the glory of the national game and paving the way for more hockey events in Pakistan.

The top three teams from the qualifying round will qualify for the 2024 Olympics and Pakistan sees this as a vital opportunity to book a spot in the prestigious tournament. Pakistan missed out on the last two editions held in Brazil (2016) and Japan (2020) and wants to make an impact.

Hussain promised that the PHF would do its best to make the event unforgettable. The federation aims to organise a successful tournament and give a chance for Pakistan’s national team to shine.

When asked about the financial issues, Hussain said that the PHF sought help from the government as well as the Army Welfare Trust and DHA Lahore, who agreed to support the federation.

After securing the hosting rights of the Olympic qualifying tournament, a detailed documentation process will start soon which will help the PHF to calculate the cost of hosting the tournament.

Hussain said that despite financial difficulties, the PHF had arranged international tours for both the senior and junior national teams and remains committed to providing maximum international exposure for the players.