Fourth edition of inter-provincial games begin in Peshawar

PESHAWAR: The wrangling between the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) and Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP) to ensure that a team of their choice plays in the 4th edition of the Inter-Provincial Games generated controversy here on Sunday.

All the planned athletics competitions for the day were cancelled when the AFP announced boycott. The two parties could not sort out their differences as the AFP representatives complained of indifferent attitude of POA.

The efforts of the organising committee to settle the dispute could not succeed because both sides refused to show any flexibility and remained stuck to their position over the matter.

Sources said that the organising committee of the games was mulling excluding the athletics from the event as they thought it would put the controversy and dispute to rest.

The officials of the POA are of the opinion that the athletics team selected and brought by the Provincial Olympic Associations of Sindh and Balochistan would take part in the games.

They said that the Provincial Olympics Associations are recognised by the POA and it was the right of the teams they brought to play in the event.

However, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Athletics Association argued that it was the right of athletes brought by Sindh and Balochistan Athletics Associations to be allowed to play in the games.

President Khyber Pakh-tunkhwa Athletics Association Habibullah Afridi complained that POA officials misbehaved with AFP office-bearers and were not willing to hold any talks with them to sort out the issue.

He cited differences between the POA and AFP as the real reason behind the unpleasant situation.

Earlier, the squash teams of Sindh were also barred from the event over a similar issue. One team was brought by the Sindh Olympic Association while the Sindh Athletics Federation had brought its own team.

The absence of any high-level government official at the opening ceremony of the games also left the organiser high and dry.

Even the provincial Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs Mehmood Khan did not attend the event let alone Chief Minister Pervez Khattak.

Though there was no mention on the invitation card that who would be the chief guest, but the organisers had invited Governor Iqbal Zafar Jhagra and Chief Minister Pervez Khattak as guests of honour.

Secretary Sports KP Muhammad Tariq and Director General (DG) Sports Junaid Khan represented the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government at the inaugural ceremony.

President Pakistan Olympic Association Lt Gen (R) Arif Hassan was later selected as the chief guest. He announced the formal commencement of the games after the Olympic Cauldron at the Peshawar Sports Complex was lit.

Though it was a good and colourful opening ceremony where young girls and boys attired in the traditional dresses presented traditional dances, the empty stands raised questions about the ability of the organisers and Directorate of Sports to pull ample crowd.

Fireworks were performed on the occasion.

Around 1,700 athletes, 300 each from Balochistan, Sindh, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 500 from Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata), Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Kashmir and Islamabad are featuring in the games.

Competitions in 35 different sports disciplines including 24 for male and 11 females sports would be held during the games to be concluded tomorrow.