Ignoring SOA, Sindh govt inaugurates Beach Games

KARACHI: Overlooking the mandatory role of the Sindh Olympic Association (SOA), the Sindh government inaugurated the National Beach Games here at the Beach Luxury Hotel on Friday.

Sindh Sports Minister Mohammad Bux Khan Mahar formally announced the Games opening during a gripping ceremony.

Organisers claimed that in the three-day Games, around 800 athletes and officials from the four provinces and Gilgit Baltistan would show their worth in 13 male and six female disciplines.

“Credit goes to my team which worked hard and made the competitions possible,” Bux Mahar said.

He said he tried during his tenure to open new vistas for sports in the province by building sports infrastructure so that sports could be properly promoted.

Meanwhile Sindh Sports Secretary Salim Raza said that they faced several hurdles but eventually those were smoothly overcome and on Saturday (today) the Games would begin at the sea view facility.

Earlier, during talks with ‘The News’, a senior sports official of the Sindh sports department said that they held three meetings with the SOA but the Olympic association was insisting that the fund should be used by them.

“We told them that the government would utilise the fund. They cannot do anything against the government’s stance,” the official said.

The SOA on Thursday held a press conference at the Karachi Press Club, requesting the Sindh government not to use the word ‘National’ while holding the competitions.

After ignoring the role of the SOA, Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) has already stopped national federations and provincial Olympic associations from fielding their players in the Games.

In the competitions, some para-events have also been included. But it was seen for the first time that in the three-day event, which was properly advertised in the media, the first day had been kept exclusively for the opening ceremony.

Renowned singer Shazia Khushk enthralled the audience through her melodious songs. Organisers also said that such Games would be organised once again at the end of the year.The Pakistan Peoples Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto could not attend the opening ceremony due to his engagement somewhere else, Bux Mahar informed. However he said that next time Bilawal would also be with them.