Tashkent, Uzbekistan, November 5, 2022: Weightlifting runs in the family of Babar Mansoor Butt, the national coach for Pakistan in the sport who decided he wanted to broaden his horizon by becoming a referee too.
The coach-turned-referee, who received his Certificate of Participation at the OCA Development Programme in Tashkent on Saturday, November 5, was quick to point out that it was all a new learning experience for him.
“Although I come from a weightlifting family, this is the first time that I have participated in a seminar like this. It has opened my eyes, and I’m very grateful to the Olympic Council of Asia for giving me and the others, this opportunity,” Mansoor Butt said.
His nephew Noor Dastgir Butt won the gold medal in the +109kg category at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games earlier this year. His elder brother represented the country at the 10th Asian Games in Seoul in 1986. He himself had been Pakistan national champion in the +109kg class for 10 years.
“Yes, my family which comes from Gujuranwala in Punjab has very close ties with weightlifting. I was a competitor, and then became a coach. But about eight months ago, I decided to also become a referee to get another angle on the sport.
“This seminar has been hugely beneficial to me. I have learned about the new rules, and why they were introduced, and also about new techniques,” Mansoor Butt said.
He was one of 46 weightlifting coaches and referees to receive certificates.
Among the coaches were Nepalese Sanjay Maharjan, the national coach of Nepal, who is hoping to take home the knowledge he has received in Tashkent and spread it widely around.
“Our last weightlifter at the Olympics was back in 2008 in Beijing. My aim is to get someone qualified for the next Olympics. Although we have done well regionally, at international level we are far behind,” Maharjan pointed out.
“At the 2019 South Asian Games in my country, we won two gold medals, five silver and seven bronze medals in weightlifting. Now I want to aim higher and this course has opened my eyes to new techniques which I believe will benefit us,” Maharjan added.