HEC inter-university sports final rounds postponed

KARACHI: The final rounds of HEC inter-university sports championships have been postponed across the country due to Covid-19, ‘The News’ learnt on Wednesday.

The federal government has announced lockdown in various cities of the country, specially Punjab where the final rounds of a number of sports disciplines were to be organised.

HEC sports department organises Inter University Sports championships each year and more than 100 universities participate in these sports competitions.

The HEC has divided all universities across the country in nine zones. Two teams qualify from each zone for the final rounds. Different universities are allotted different competitions.

Sources said that zonal rounds had been completed before the third wave of Covid-19.

The HEC organised competitions of 35 sports disciplines for boys and 25 for girls.

Sources said that final rounds of only cricket and badminton have been completed this year so far.

The HEC organised contests of athletics, cricket, football, badminton, bolleyball, squash, wrestling, boxing, judo, bodybuilding, cycling, weight-lifting, baseball, kabbadi, netball, tug of war, table tennis, karate, and Gymnastics.

The young athletes are disappointed at the postponement of the final rounds.

When this correspondent contacted the HEC sports department to ask about the alternative plan, the authorities concerned were not available.

The competitions were organised in Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Quetta, Peshawar, Sialkot, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Hyderabad, and Khairpur.

The students who have reached the final rounds said the HEC authorities should announce when and where they would organise the final rounds so that they would continue their preparation.