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HomeGo To PakistanWomen in Gilgit-Baltistan gear up for the first sporting event but some...

Women in Gilgit-Baltistan gear up for the first sporting event but some clerics are unhappy

Gilgit-Baltistan Women Sports Gala 2022 will see college-going women participate in a range of sports tournaments – including cricket, basketball, tennis, badminton.

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In Gilgit-Baltistan, young college women are making last-minute preparations for the ‘big day’. They’re polishing their bats, tightening the strings on their racquets and warming up for the Gilgit-Baltistan Women Sports Gala 2022 on 5 October. The day-long event at Lalik Jan Stadium is the first for the region—a sports extravaganza for women, by women.

Local college-going women will participate in a range of sports tournaments – including cricket, basketball, tennis, badminton, squash, table tennis and hockey. Helmed by women in every aspect, it is being managed by an all-female team of working professionals. Organised by Pakistan’s Ministry of Gilgit-Baltistan, the chief-secretary announced that it was being organised “to empower and boost the confidence of the region’s young women.” Apart from sports, the event will also aim to promote other arenas such as entrepreneurship, promotion of local culture, dresses, local cuisines and local products.

However, despite Pakistani women continually making waves in sports, the event is not without detractors. A ‘religious scholar’ chided the organisers, by referring to the venue as “the Eid-Gah for Muslims.” He was, as expected, criticised on social media. Diana Baig, a Pakistani cricketer from Gilgit-Baltistan, called out the outlandish nature of the statement – saying that Gilgit has nurtured several athletes, the stadium has hosted multiple sporting events in the past, and that the issue was being raised solely because it was a women’s event.


Also read: Mughal-e-Azam, Pakeezah to Gadar, Hindi cinema’s Muslim characters are never Pasmandas


Push for women in sports

While being the first in Gilgit, cities in Pakistan have hosted an array of sports meets. A few weeks ago, the Pakistan Squash Federation organised an event to celebrate ‘Women’s Squash week’ in Islamabad. Broadening the definition of what comprises ‘sport’ and keeping up with pandemic trends in 2021– Islamabad held Pakistan’s first eSports competition called ‘HerGalaxy’ for women gamers.

Golf is a sport that has seen a massive overhaul in Pakistan, post the setting-up of a Ladies Golf Championship which takes place nationally and is annually rotated between Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad. The sport in Pakistan has been nourished by “talent-hunting,” done through the organising of regular golf matches for girls under the age of 14.

Gatherings such as these foster an atmosphere in which women get much-needed encouragement and appreciation, in the male-dominated field of sports. Gilgit-Baltistan aims to add to its already-growing lot of successful athletes. One such athlete is Pakistani footballer Malika-E-Noor, the national women’s team’s vice-captain and the captain of Pakistan Army’s football team.

In an interview, she called the region a “a talent hotspot for women’s sport” and said it could provide “world champions to the country.”

Malika-E-Noor referred to the people of Gilgit as being “naturally athletic.” The first Pakistani woman to climb Mount Everest, Samina Baig, belongs to the area and in all probability first learnt to navigate the rocky terrain of her home state. Renowned skiers, the Wali Sisters – Ifrah and Amna Wali, from Gilgit, were the first women athletes to win at South Asian Games. They went on to become the first Pakistani women to participate in the Winter Olympic qualifiers and represented the country at the 2017 Winter Asian games.

The organisers of the Women Sports Gala 2022 also seem to believe in Gilgit’s athletic talent. In a statement, chief secretary of Gilgit-Baltistan, Mohyuddin Ahmad Wani, said they will “celebrate the achievements of our toppers who will go on to be future professionals.”

(Edited by Ratan Priya)

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