Jashan Azadi Polo Festival Concludes with NLI Victory. A total of 15 teams participated in the Jashan Azadi Polo Festival, while teams from Chitral also participated for the first time. The NLI polo team defeated the Gilgit-Baltistan Scouts Polo Team in the final, scoring 4 goals to 3. Both teams had advanced to the final round by competing against various other polo teams. The match was a thrilling contest.

The match played at the Wahab Shaheed Polo Ground was watched and enjoyed by a large number of fans, a spectacular fireworks display was also performed at the end of the match.

A large number of fans from all districts of Gilgit-Baltistan, including Chitral, and from both domestic and foreign tourists, gathered at Wahab Shaheed Polo Ground to watch the final match. However, due to overcrowding, thousands were unable to enter. Some fans resorted to watching the match from the rooftops of nearby structures.

Chief Minister Gilgit-Baltistan Haji Gulbar Khan attended the final match of Jashan Azadi Polo Festival at Wahab Shaheed Polo Ground as a special guest. On this occasion, he said that polo is the national sport of Gilgit-Baltistan and a part of our historical and cultural heritage. Concrete steps will be taken at the government level to make polo popular among the people and to promote long-standing traditions.

He expressed his appreciation for Chitral’s participation in the Jashan Azadi Polo Festival and commended Major General Kashif Khalil Force Commander Gilgit-Baltistan for successfully organizing the event. The Force Commander pledged to further enhance the Wahab Shaheed Polo Ground and expand the seating capacity to accommodate more spectators.

The Karakoram International University (KIU) in Gilgit recently celebrated International Mountain Day with a one-day wall climbing competition, which was organised in partnership with EVK2CNR. The competition showcased KIU’s commitment to providing students with top-notch sports facilities, including a state-of-the-art climbing wall.

The competition was divided into four categories: Category 1 for students aged 6 to 12; Category 2 for students aged 12 to 19; Category 3 for those aged 20 and over; and Category 4 for women of all ages. 22 male and female students took part in the competition, and the following students emerged as winners:

In the female category, Nasimane won first place, Saima Zahra took second place, and Alina Ali took third place. In Category B, Muhammad Abbas Mehdi won first place, Arshad Hussain took second place, and Ali Abbas took third place. In Category D, Muhammad Sami Zaib won first place, Hussain Sami took second place, and Ali Mantaha took third place. In Category E, Muhammad Ali won first place, Rahim Uddin took second place, and Zeeshan Abbas took third place.

The winners were recognised with shields and certificates from the chief guest, Dr. Khalil Ahmed, Dean of Life Sciences at KIU, and other distinguished guests.

The wall climbing competition on International Mountain Day not only highlighted the university’s commitment to sports and fitness, but also the importance of mountain conservation and appreciation for the unique beauty of mountain regions. Mountains play a crucial role in the lives of communities, providing them with vital resources such as water, food, and medicine. They also have cultural, spiritual, and recreational value.

Participating in outdoor sports like climbing has numerous benefits for mental and physical health. It can reduce stress, improve cardiovascular health, increase muscle strength and endurance, and boost self-esteem. Encouraging young people to engage in outdoor sports and appreciate the beauty of mountain regions can also foster a sense of environmental responsibility and a commitment to preserving these fragile ecosystems for future generations.

KIU’s wall climbing competition on International Mountain Day was a thrilling celebration of the beauty and benefits of mountains, and a testament to the university’s commitment to sports and environmental responsibility.

SCO Mountain Girls Premier League

In the world of sports, it started off that girls could never play sports and then in 1972, a civil law called Title IX came into existence which permitted girls to play athletics. It took some extra time for Gilgit-Baltistan to bring girls into this domain!

“And while parents’ support of their children’s gendered behaviour is not always and certainly not simply a conscious effort at gender socialisation, their behaviour is probably more powerful than they think. Even parents who strive for gender equality, and who believe that they do not constrain their children’s behaviour along gender lines, have been observed in experimental situations doing just that” 

Eckert and McConnell-Ginet, 743

Nevertheless, football has always been perceived as more of a masculine game rather than a female game. But, if girls prefer to play this male leading sport it is usually because they are in it for the love of the sport not for making an effort to be famous or to prove that they can do anything. 

The Gulmit Young Stars Club and Students Welfare Organisation is among one of the registered organisations which strives to endow these youthful brilliant girls who have got the spark in them. 

We’re taking you to this inspiring quest about the story of the Mountain Girls premier league! So hang on.. 

The Gulmit young stars Club and Students welfare is a nonprofit-oriented endeavor with the objective to serve for youth progress in sports and students welfare. The organisers say that it was founded in 1997 with some like minded young folks to cater for the necessities of the youngsters then. At the present, Gulmit Young Stars Club and Students Welfare Organisation commemorated its silver jubilee spree by organising numerous events, and the Mountain Girls Premier League is just another feather in the hat. 

The Mountain Girls Premier League got underway back in 2020. A total of 12 teams from all over District Hunza partook. This was the first ever all girl’s tournament organised by any club in the history of Gilgit Baltistan to address the needs of female sports players and provide them with a platform to showcase their talent and skills which later could be showcased on National and International level. 

The best part of this event was that the girls were very much enthusiastic in terms of their participation and representing their respective teams in the tournament. Season II of the Mountain Girls Premier League, kicked off earlier this year, which included teams from all over Hunza District again. 

MGPL is a platform for all of the female players who want to polish their skills and talent for national and international level tournaments and represent Pakistan and Gilgit Baltistan in specific. This soccer tournament contributed much to these young talented female players. 

It is a leeway for these young players to understand each other in the field of sports and foster to the setting and tourism of the region. The Mountain Girls Premier League aims to administer female football partakers to expand prosperous workouts in the area and will play its part to generate more professional female players. Yet the club is battling hard to nurture such healthful recreations for both male and female teenagers to embrace a healthy life and withhold from infirm energies.

But due to scarce resources, it is not substantial to fill in each segment of society.  

Sports contribute to the expansion of tourism in Gilgit Baltistan. From the very exhibitions, the positive facets are reflected in the world. The soft image of Pakistan is implicitly dangling on the shoulders of Gilgit Baltistan.

Athletics is invariably a platform for players to exhibit their capability to the world. Girls in Gilgit-Baltistan need to step forth and contribute to happenings as boys do. 

Talking to The Karakoram Magazine, one of the club members quoted ‘They need relevant forums to showcase their abilities. Female players need encouragement to play their role in promoting healthy activities like this. 

Making it simple and straight, the Government of Gilgit Baltistan should move its attention to sports events for females and facilitate local clubs to promote healthy activities for them not harming the sentiments and the traditions of the region. 

She added, ‘In today’s digital world youth has more attachment to the technological side of the field, but they are physically less active in the field of sports. Local clubs and NGOs are working to foster with the physical needs of the youth in the area, but the same amount of effort is needed to form the Government to cope with the challenges.

Concluding her talk with the TKM, the team MGPL paid special gratitude to the SCO for their sponsorship. SCO stands tall as the largest and only 4G network with 280 towers and 0.8 million active users in GB. Despite unusual topography, periodic land sliding, and drastic weather conditions, SCO has operated as the pioneer of communication and executed to procure basic connectivity liturgies. 

Moreover, SCO has launched its services in almost all of the distinguished tourist locales. SCO has always promised to contribute to the evolution of the region and is remembered for its CSR activities. Be it cleanliness drives at several tourist destinations or telemedicine installations in far flung areas like Gojal, shimshal, and Askoli. Apart from that, Numerous occasions organised for youth and women of the region are sponsored without a second thought by the Special Communication organisation.