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| Donkey cart race draws large, enthusiastic participation |
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‘Mad’ donkey wins in first appearance
Monday, March 02, 2009
By Farooq Baloch
Karachi
A donkey called Pagal (mad) enthralled all the participants as well as viewers in its first Hamara Karachi Donkey Cart Race appearance on Sunday to make it to the first position of the ever-exciting cultural donkey cart race. The event was jointly organized by the Hamara Karachi Foundation and the Pakistan Sports Donkey Cart Race Federation (PSDCRF).
Pir Muhammad, who was riding “Pagal”, the fast and furious donkey, won the race with big margin as Pagal never looked back once the race started. Pir Muhammad, a resident of Lyari, told The News that this was the first time Pagal had ever won a race. “It was the magic of my donkey (Pagal) and a little bit of handling technique that resulted in my victory,” he commented in excitement.
The defending champion and winner of last year’s event, Salim Japani, who was riding ‘Radhay’, ended up second followed by a former winner of the same event Asghar Badshah, rider of ‘Be Khabar,’ who remained third in the contest. Salim Japani of Baldia Town and Asghar Badshah of SITE Town both showed great sportsman spirit by patting Pir Muhammad on the back. “It’s a game. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, but never mind,” said Salim Japani. “He is our brother and we are happy that he won the race for the first time,” added Asghar Badshah.
A total of 40 donkey cart riders from different towns, mainly from Lyari, participated in the seven-kilometre-long race from Gulbai Chowk to Jahangir Kothari Parade. PSDCRF General Secretary Sheikh Nisar Ahmed was the referee of the race, while City Naib Nazim Nasreen Jalil was the chief guest of the event which was carried out and concluded with much funfare.
Expressing their feelings minutes before the race started, excited participants had been dancing on the beats of drums (Dholak) and traditional Balochi (Sheedi) music to celebrate. “It’s our ancestors’ sports and even today we play it with the same spirit,” said one participant. The youths, gathered in large numbers, were found making predictions about winners, with some even indulging in betting. Most predictions went wrong, however, as a newcomer won the race.
Congratulating the participants and the winner at the end of the race, City Naib Nazim Nasreen Jalil said that the donkey cart race was Karachi’s asset and its identity. “We want the donkey cart race to be world famous and recognized as an identity of Karachi, particularly Lyari,” she said.
Later, Jalil distributed cash prizes of Rs10,000, Rs7,000 and Rs5,000 to the top three race winners and Rs500 each to the rest of the race participants. After the concluding session, friends and relatives of the winners celebrated again by dancing to drumbeats.
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ISSN 1563-9479 
