 "Pakistan hockey players threaten to skip FIH Pro League over allowance row")
Lahore: A pay dispute hit Pakistan hockey as some senior players threatened to boycott the men’s FIH Pro League second phase in February, alleging that they have not been given the full daily allowances for matches earlier this month.
At least two members of the national men’s team confirmed that a clear message had been sent to the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) that many players would not be available for the FIH Pro League if the financial issues were not sorted out before that.
“We were assured we would be paid 30,000 rupees daily allowance for the duration of the Pro League event in Argentina earlier this month. Last week we got the daily allowances in our accounts but at the rate of just 11,000 rupees which is a sham,” one player said.
“If you look at the exchange rates 30,000 means around 110 dollars while 11,000 is just 40 dollars which is a huge difference to us,” he added.
Pakistan played four matches in FIH Pro League in Argentina earlier this month, losing all of them. They will play four matches in February in Australia.
The PHF has told the players that the daily allowances for all players and officials were sent to them by the Pakistan Sports Board which has a policy of giving a daily allowance of USD 40 for athletes going abroad for participation in an event.
“The PHF policy is to pay players 30,000 daily allowance but since the PSB is funding the entire expenses of the team for the two phases of the Pro League Hockey we can’t do much in this matter,” PHF Secretary Rana Mujahid said.
He said after government approval, funds were approved for the FIH Pro League participation and the PSB has also paid for the tickets and hotel expenses of the team besides the daily allowances.
Pakistan were promoted to the FIH Pro League through the Hockey Nations Cup played in Malaysia earlier this year. New Zealand, who won the Hockey Nations Cup against Pakistan in the final, were unable to join FIH Pro League this time.
Under the rules, FIH extended the invitation to the runners-up side Pakistan, who confirmed their participation in the FIH Pro League.
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