Pakistan hockey coach, Dutchman Siegfried Aikman, joins players in Ramzan fasting

Siegfried Aikman is doing is perhaps something very new. Aikman, acclimatising to his surroundings in his role as the coach of the Pakistan men's hockey team, decided to join the players in something that is very significant to them. It's the month of Ramzan, leading up to Eid al-Fitr in less than 30 days. Amid the month-long day-time fasting, meals can only be had before and after sunset. Members of the Islamic community, including top-flight sportspersons, follow the Ramzan rituals, which could be a very difficult thing to do alongside training for high-performance sports. Schedules can go for a toss, diet plans demand a break and training programs are required to be re-drawn. It is Aikman's first such experience. As the Pakistan players were allowed a break from the national camp to be with their families for the first day of Ramzan, Aikman made a decision: he started fasting as well.

"It was a thing I thought about because this is an opportunity to experience what the players experience," said Aikman, talking to TimesofIndia.com from Pakistan. While that decision of Aikman has warmed Pakistani hearts, it throws up a different set of challenges for him in his role as the team's coach. The Dutchman was re-working the training schedule to incorporate Ramzan-related requirements, when he took a break to answer TimesofIndia.com's questions. "Was planning the camp, how to make a schedule for the practice. I read a paper written by one of our FIH coaches about Ramzan and high-performance hockey, and he suggested that we should practice in the evening, so the players can have three meals in the night and sleep at daytime mainly," said Aikman, who was the head coach of the Japan men's team before accepting an offer from the