Women’s hockey academy inaugurated

ISLAMABAD: Women hockey is set to get a major boost in Pakistan as the first ever academy has been established at the Viqar-Un-Nisa Postgraduate College for Women in Rawalpindi Thursday. Member National Assembly (MNA) Hanif Abbasi, who was the chief guest, inaugurated the academy.

Besides others, MNA Daniyal Chaudhry, Olympian Khawaja Junaid, Political Secretary British High Commission Cormic Dreelan, Group Head Allied Bank Faisal Ghauri, Principal Viqar-Un-Nisa College Zahida Parveen attended the inauguration ceremony.

“The ultramodern artificial turf, which presently costs around Rs35 million, was imported during the PML-N government’s last tenure but unfortunately this asset was not utilitized till to date. I must appreciate Khawaja Junaid Hockey Academy and Allied Bank for joining hands to make this facility functional for our female athletes. The college has around 6,000 students and I hope it will provide some shining stars for the national women hockey team,” Hanif Abbasi said.

Daniyal Chaudhry on the occasion expressed the hope that the initiative would have great impact on the students as well as the broader community. “It is heartening to see Khawaja Junaid Academy is nurturing the talent from the grassroots level, ensuring that young girls receive comprehensive training in both the technical and strategic aspects of hockey.

“I’m sure the success of this academy will pave the way for similar initiatives in other parts of the country,” he added.

Speaking on the occasion, Khawaja Junaid said that the academy was aimed at identifying and nurturing budding players to represent Pakistan at the national and international levels. He added that long-term vision for the academy included hosting tournaments, establishing exchange programmes with international hockey academies, and producing players who can represent Pakistan at the global level.

“We have provided experienced coaching staff to the academy, while Allied Bank will be providing financial support for the coaching purposes,” he added. Faisal Ghauri in his remarks said Allied Bank was proud to support Khawaja Junaid Academy as it would help promote women sports in the country.