Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab and Commissioner Office Lahore have joined hands for strengthening the base of national hockey in the country and in this regard Secretary Sports and Youth Affairs Punjab Asadullah Faiz along with Commissioner Lahore Capt (R) M Usman addressed a press conference at National Hockey Stadium on Saturday.
DG Sports Punjab Tariq Qureshi, DC Lahore Umer Sher Chattha, Director Sports Nadeem Qaiser, Director Youth Affairs Syed Omair Hasan, Olympians Tauqeer Dar, Kh Junaid, former skipper M Saqlain, DSO Tanveer Shah and other officials were also present on this occasion.
Asadullah Faiz said that the inaugural ceremony of Lahore Division Under-13 Hockey League would be held at National Hockey Stadium on July 5 while the matches of the league will start on July 16, 2022 at three venues of Lahore – National Hockey Stadium, National Hockey Stadium Pitch-2 and Johar Town Hockey ground.
Asadullah Faiz said that holding the Under-13 Hockey League was imperative to trace fresh hockey talent at the grassroots level. “It is just beginning and we are going to make this tournament an integral part of our Annual Sports Calendar”.
Secretary Sports and Youth Affairs Punjab Asadullah Faiz said: “This will be an incentive-based league and we will give stipends to all talented and top performing players. After district level, this league will be organized at divisional level in the next phase”.
Commissioner Lahore informed that three teams from Lahore and two teams from other three districts of Lahore division will participate in U-13 Hockey League. “The trials of the Under-13 Hockey League have been completed in which over 1100 U-13 players took part from across the Lahore Division”.