"We are just so grateful to have created history for Pakistan, this win is a result of so many sacrifices," exclaimed the Pakistan U16 team head coach Kifayatullah as his team defeated the highly-rated Iran 3-2 in the final held in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand on Saturday night.

Pakistan had finished fourth in the previous edition, and for them to clinch the title in 2025 has been nothing less than a fairytale.

They remained undefeated in the tournament that spanned over eight days in Thailand.

Starting the campaign in Pool D, where they were slotted with South Korea, Chinese Taipei, and Saudi Arabia.

In their opening match, they defeated the top team, South Korea, 3-0, and then proved too good for Saudi Arabia and Chinese Taipei, finishing with the dominant scoreline of 3-0 in the preliminary round. Later they played Iran in the next round, and sealed a 3-1 win to continue their flawless trail towards the semifinal, which was against the traditional rivals India.

Kiyatullah explained that winning the semifinal was the key moment as they routed India 3-0.

" We've had a very long journey and I can only thank Allah for it, this result in the final has been huge for us," he told this correspondent on the phone after the victory celebrations. "When we first started our campaign here, we thought we had a chance when we saw the competition. The win against South Korea was a great motivator, too."

The road to the Asian Championship was paved with sacrifices.

Kifayatullah, who has been a successful volleyball player himself, with two gold medals and a silver medal at the 1989 South Asian Games, began the training camp with 22-23 players at the Attock Army Centre during March.

This was also his first assignment for any national team in his career of 23 years as a coach.

" WE began the camp in Attock, and we had a pool of very talented boys, but we brought it down to 12 players. The key factor was to pick each player on merit and not accept any kind of intervention from anyone when it came to the team selection.

"We trained at the Army centre for two and a half months, which was good but it had its own challenges, because the Army institution work in their way and on their own pace, simple things like food was a bit of a problem, but we made sure that we kept the kids motivated and one thing that I drilled into them was to keep their eyes on the prize.

"It was tough, but I really want to thank the Pakistan Volleyball Federation Ch. Muhammad Yaqoob, who was very cooperative and managed the resources and funds for the team to prepare and to participate in the Asian Championship.

"It was after two and a half months that we got to change the training venue, and we started our sessions in Islamabad, after the men#s team left for their international tournament.

"But the biggest challenge in Islamabad, too, was the heatwave.

"I just want to thank and appreciate my boys; they have been very patient and cooperative through it all. In a month and a half that we spent in Islamabad, I made sure that we got the exposure to good competition, and we had a series of matches with the U19 team that was training for an international event. It had the experience of four to five international competitions, so we thought it would help us.

"I think we did well despite the limited resources that we have. It is a personal victory for me, as I promised the PVF that I would win the gold for them with these children, and I am grateful to Allah that he helped me keep that promise," explained Kiyatulah.

He shared that Iran was their toughest opponent, but it was a delight to win against a team that had around 12 people in support staff compared to his contingent of 12 players and just three coaches.

Kifayatullah was supported by Mohib Rasool and Laiq Zaman.

He also appreciated Iran, which prepared its team despite the outbreak of the war.

"Iran won an international event in Uzbekistan, and when the war broke out with Israel, they decided to move their camp to Uzbekistan and stayed behind, so they found a way to prepare their team with top facilities despite the challenges of war," added Kifayatullah.