Bangladesh national hockey team’s planned training camp in Germany is now uncertain due to visa problems ahead of the Asian Games.
A Bangladesh Hockey Federation official confirmed the situation to Daily Sun on Monday. The federation believes missing the Germany tour would hurt the team’s preparation for the Asian Games in Japan.
The BHF is still trying to solve the visa issue. However, officials believe there is currently an equal chance of the tour going ahead or being cancelled.
The federation has also started looking at changes to its original schedule. Officials are trying different ways to complete the visa process.
The BHF has contacted the foreign ministry for help. It has also sent all necessary documents to the German ambassador in Dhaka.
BHF president is also in regular contact with the German Embassy. The federation hopes to receive a positive response soon.
If the team can travel by August 25, the BHF plans to hold a two week camp in Germany. Bangladesh could also play eight or nine practice matches during that period.
The original plan was much longer. Bangladesh were initially expected to leave for Germany between August 10 and 12 for a 25 day camp.
Under that plan, the team would have played around 20 practice matches across four or five German cities.
The BHF had also planned to bring four German coaches into the programme. They would work in different areas including penalty corners, goalkeeping, attack and video analysis.
Peter Gerrard, who previously worked in Bangladesh, was expected to oversee the programme as technical director.
Bangladesh were initially scheduled to return to Dhaka on September 10 before leaving for Japan on September 14 for the Asian Games.
