In the last decade or so, Pakistan has had trouble hosting international sporting events due to reasons galore, and it seems probable that they might lose another such tournament. Lahore the host of the 2024 South Asian Games, might be stripped of the rights. The venue may be shifted to Bangladesh, as per a report in The News International, a Pakistani publication.
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The report suggests that Lahore is not prepared for the 2024 South Asian Games. While Sri Lanka was considered as a potential replacement, but the economic slowdown might see Bangladesh win the hosting rights.
As per the South Asian Olympic Committee (SAOC), Bangladesh is fully prepared to play the host, even on short notice. Pakistan was awarded the rights way back in 2019, during the Nepal edition, and has hosted the event two times before — in 1989 and in 2004.
The report further suggests that there were differences between government officials of different departments over the venues for the Games. The name of Islamabad as the single venue had also cropped up. Eventually, it was awarded to Lahore, Faisalabad, and Sialkot. The worsening economic situation of Pakistan has only added to the burden of hosting the Games. Moreover, the infrastructure projects are far from complete.
The India angle
Over the last few years, usually, the Indian authorities have been reluctant to send teams to Pakistan citing security concerns. For the same reason, the Indian team’s matches in the Asia Cup in Pakistan were shifted to Sri Lanka. If Pakistan does manage to host the South Asian Games 2024, it will be interesting to see if the Indian team participates in it or not. Then of course, another event lined up in Pakistan is the Champions Trophy 2025, which could again see a stand-off between the arch-rivals.
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With India refusing to travel to Pakistan so often, the latter have also protested against the same. In fact, the Pakistan Cricket Board mulled over not participating in the World Cup 2023 as well.
