Sports Board plans to organize more International Events in 2015:Director General Sports Punjab Usman Anwer

Lahore: After holding Punjab Youth Festival (PYF) quite successfully, establishing 28 Guinness World Records and taking silver and bronze medals in Kabaddi World Cup in 2014, Sports Board Punjab will try to scale new heights in 2015, these views were expressed by Director General Sports Punjab Usman Anwer while talking to media at National Hockey Stadium on Tuesday.

DG SBP said that Sports Board Punjab will definitely utilize all of its resources to script fresh victories in the New Year. “We will give our sports enthusiasts some more encouraging news in the next calendar year. In 2014, we managed to get worldwide acknowledgement and exposure for kabaddi players and other athletes,” he added.

Elaborating the performance during the just-concluding year, DG SBP said: “We spend a hectic sports year in which our sportsmen offered notable performances both in individual and team capacity. We organised a gigantic Punjab Youth Festival in a befitting manner. Our athletes set up over two dozen Guinness World records and our performance was appreciated world wide”, he described.

Highlighting the role of Sports Board Punjab in games promotion throughout the country, Usman Anwar said that nobody can deny the excellent services rendered by the Sports Board Punjab. “Our athletes are winning titles not only within the country but also on foreign land as well. Who can forget Muhammad Saadi and Muhammad Rashid, who represented Pakistan in Guinness World Record Show held in Milan, Italy a couple of months ago. The highly talented duo was trained and prepared by Sports Board Punjab for the high profile Guinness event,” he elaborated.

Usman said that SBP, under the directives of Punjab government, was taking every possible step for the development of healthy activities. “The way Punjab govt, under the leadership of Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, is focusing on the growth of sports that time is not far away when Pakistan women especially Kabaddi team will also have respectable status in the world,” he expressed his hope.

Answering a query about the success of PYF, Usman told that several countries tried to copy our Punjab Youth Festival pattern which was a huge achievement. “Even Indian officials were quite impressed with our organization of PYF and performance in the grand event,” he asserted.

About the Kabaddi performances in recent World Kabaddi League and Kabaddi World Cup, Usman said that Pakistan’s men kabaddi team bagged silver medal while women squad clinched bronze medal in the 5th edition of Kabaddi World Cup. “The excellent performances of Pakistan kabaddi teams were being discussed everywhere which is a big success. Our women team got this status in a short period of only three years. Our also boys did great hard work and emerged as a leading team of the world,” he added.

Replying a question about 2015, DG SBP expressed his determination to improve organizational and sporting performance in the next calendar year. “We analyzed our performances thoroughly during the previous year and in light of that analysis, we will try our best to show an improved performance in the fresh year,” he explained.

Usman Anwar disclosed that SBP was going to give an invaluable gift to nation in 2015 in the shape of four fresh sports venues – Squash Court, Tennis Stadium, Swimming Pool and Boxing Academy in the Nishter Park Sports Complex. “In 2015, these sporting venues will be operational and definitely, it will be a great contribution towards the bright prospects of national sports,” he concluded.