Hosting Pakistan’s Special Olympics delegation that won 16 medals – 3 gold, 7 silver, and 6 bronze – Provincial Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs Jahangir Khanzada praised the efforts of all the athletes, coaches, and officials who had raised Pakistan’s flag in the World Winter Games 2017 in Austria where 2,700 athletes belonging to 107 countries competed in nine sports.
Jahangir Khanzada promised that the government was fully striving for the provision of opportunities to special people by mainstreaming their participation in educational, sports, recreational, and skills development activities and that a Special Olympics Punjab event will be held in October this year. He promised to provide special athletes with access to these facilities and help build an inclusive Punjab.
He further added that revolutionary steps were being taken for the promotion of sports among the differently-abled. He promised that the Punjab Sports Board would continue to work in collaboration with the Chief Minister’s Special Monitoring Unit (SMU) and Special Olympics Pakistan (SOP).
At a luncheon hosted in honor of the returning athletes, Jahangir Khanzada distributed cheques worth Rs 75,000 each to gold medalists Misha Naeem, Sabahat Tariq, and Fatima Amir, cheques worth Rs 50,000 each to silver medalists Hamza Aslam, Usama Aziz, Parvez Ahmad, and Hameed Ud Din, and cheques amounting to Rs 40,000 to bronze medalist Tehmina Munir.
These athletes belong to Sindh, KPK, Balochistan, FATA, and Gilgit-Baltistan. The sports minister congratulated the athletes and said that they had won laurels for the country through their capabilities. Three special athletes from Punjab – namely Farah Ehsan, Mehwish Tufail, and Muhammad Abdullah – were also present, and were honored with similar prizes in an earlier ceremony.
SMU Head Syeda Fatima Zaidi said that as the government is driving towards its development agenda and efforts for nurturing an inclusive Punjab and that the SMU was actively collaborating with Special Olympics Pakistan. Sports equipment and training to sports instructors in all special education department schools is also being provided.
SMU Associate Rai Mustafa said that the three Punjabi special athletes had risen above their intellectual disabilities and stood victorious, adding that the SMU would strive to protect the rights of the differently-abled and bridge every gap for their socio-economic inclusion.
Sports Secretary Nayyar Iqbal, Punjab Sports Director General Zulfiqar Ahmed Ghumman, Sports Director Anis Sheikh, and Special Olympics Pakistan Vice Chairman Anis ur Rehman were also present on the occasion.
SOP Vice Chairperson Anis ur Rehman thanked Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif and all other concerned officials for extending their full support to the Special Olympics team and expressed his full interest in and cooperation for co-organizing the Special Olympics Punjab event this year.
The Special Olympics Pakistan delegation, accompanied by the SMU, then conducted a tour of the walled-city. They were introduced to the brilliant rehabilitation and conservation of the Shahi Hamam and Masjid Wazir Khan. The delegation enjoyed their trip and appreciated the history and culture of the walled city.
