Medals galore for Pak karatekas in Colombo

KARACHI: Pakistani karatekas did a fine job as they grabbed six gold, four silver and three bronze medals on the opening day of the 4th South Asian Karate Championship at the Sugathadasa Sports Complex Indoor Stadium in Colombo on Saturday.

As per information received by this correspondent, Pakistan’s leading players Saadi Abbas (-75kg), Baz Mohammad (-84kg), Naseer Ahmed (-67kg), Shahbaz (-61kg), Nargis (-68kg) and Kulsoom Hazara (-68kg) captured gold medals for the country — which could not field complete squad due to financial issues.

Meanwhile, Nargis, Abdul Khaliq and Mohammad Awais won silver medals in their respective weights as the fourth silver Pakistan got in the male team kata.

Pakistan secured bronze in the female team kata, while Shahida won bronze in individual kata and Shah Noor claimed bronze in the Under-21 category individual kata.

Pakistan, Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan are featuring in the championship.

This was the second time that Pakistan could not field its complete side due to financial issues. Last time, Pakistan had fielded 12 players in the event hosted by India and had grabbed 18 medals.

On Saturday in Colombo, the South Asian Karate Association’s Congress was also held. Pakistan Karate Federation (PKF) chairman Mohammad Jehangir, who is also the secretary of the South Asian Karate Championship, attended the meeting.