CHITRAL – For the first time in the history of Pakistan, an ice hockey tournament was held at the Park Center Ice Ground, Upper Chitral.

During the rare ice hockey tournament, the girls’ teams from different academies of Upper Chitral competed with the boys’ teams.

A total of eight teams comprising boys and girls participated in the event.

The Canadian High Commissioner Leslie Scanlon, who was there along with her daughter, refereed the inaugural match of the event played between the Fox and Snow Leopard teams in which the latter emerged triumphant by three goals.

A large number of locals had thronged the venue in the centre of the village where the ice surface had been developed for the game with the financial support of Canadian High Commission in Islamabad and facilitated by Aga Khan Rural Support Programme by involving the local support organization.

The people evinced their high degree of interest in the newly introduced game and pleasantly surprised over the performance of the young players who had worked vigorously during the past two years when ice hockey was introduced here by the Canadian government of which it (ice hockey) is their national game.

Lady councillor Sara Shah said that the participation of little girls in the game is highly appreciable and it promised a bright future of gender equality in the area where girls had already excelled in the field of education.

Speaking on the occasion, Leslie Scanlon said that the topography of the area was ideal for the game which provided proper space and place for it while the future of the game will depend on the interest of the local communities towards.