ISLAMABAD - A colorful opening ceremony of the 37th National Kabaddi Championship 2014 was held at POF Sports Complex on Friday. The championship is being organised under the auspices of POF Sports Control Board. POF Board chairman Lt Gen M Ahsan Mahmood HI (M) was the chief guest on the occasion. In inaugural match, POF defeated Afghanistan 54-25. In addition to the opening match, three league matches were also played in which Punjab defeated Balochistan 36-16, KP defeated Sindh 34-18 and Punjab edged out KP 54-25. The teams participating in this event are Army, PAF, Navy, Police, Wapda, POF, Sui Northern Gas, HEC, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Sindh. Kabaddi teams of Iran and Afghanistan are also taking part in the event on special invitation. Talking to The Nation, POF Sports Control Board VP Col (r) Inam Ullah Khan said: “In order to present softer image of the country, invitations to the brotherly countries Iran and Afghanistan were extended and we are thankful to them for honouring our invitations by sending their respective teams. ”–Staff Reporter