‘More athletes to be enrolled in Sports Endowment Fund’

LAHORE:Secretary Sports and Youth Affairs Punjab Muzaffar Khan Sial said that the top performing players of the upcoming National Games and Pink Games will also be included in the next phase of Sports Endowment Fund.

He shared this information while chairing an important meeting at the Punjab Stadium on Friday. The key meeting was attended by DG Sports and Youth Affairs Punjab Khizar Afzaal Chaudhry, Additional Secretary Sports Mian Usman Ali, Director Admin Dr M Kaleem and Director Sports Rana Nadeem Anjum and other officials.

The 3-point agenda including Annual Development Programme schemes, Sports Endowment Fund and preparations of 35th National Games were reviewed in detail during the meeting. Addressing the meeting, Muzaffar Khan Sial said that more than 60 top performing athletes from Khelta Punjab Games and Inter-Provincial Quaid-e-Azam Games are already being awarded scholarships under Sports Endowment Fund.

He said that the prime objective of the Sports Endowment Fund of Rs2 billion is the development of the players. “The revolutionary Sports Endowment Fund is no less than a blessing for the top performing athletes of the province”.

He said the construction work is underway on 52 new sports development schemes under the Annual Development Programme. “The under construction development schemes should be completed as early as possible”. Muzaffar Khan Sial directed the officers concerned to impart best training to Punjab athletes in training camps for the preparation of National Games. “There is no doubt that the best training will help a lot our athletes to produce the best results in the National Games”.

Earlier, DG Sports and Youth Affairs Punjab Khizar Afzaal presided over a meeting at National Hockey Stadium on Friday to review the players' trials, training camps, venues and other preparations of upcoming 35th National Games. Khizar Afzaal said that the open and merit-based trials for the selection of Punjab athletes will be conducted on April 9, 10 and 11. “The representative of provincial sports association will also be a part of selection committee to ensure transparency and merit in the trials process”.

He said that 600 players will be participating in the players' training camps in three cities from April 14. “The training camps of 19 games will be conducted in Lahore out of which the camps of 11 games will be organized at Nishtar Park Sports Complex. Faisalabad will host training camps of four games while the training camp of sailing will be conducted at Karachi,” he informed.

He said Punjab is the largest province and that’s why people expect from Punjab athletes to top the medals table. “Our players must exhibit their best playing techniques and fight for medals in the mega event”.