Shoaib Siddiqui plans taking bowling to interior of Sindh

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Shoaib Ahmad Siddiqui, Secretary, Sports and Youth Affairs, Government of Sindh, who has been the motivating force in making things happens on a fast track as far as the activities of sports at the provincial level are concerned, has vowed to take the sport of bowling, popular sport of the urban areas, to the interior regions of the province.

Shoaib Siddiqui, who had taken over the chief of the sports department of Sindh in October 2008, firmly believes that it’s the fundamental right if every citizen to have access to the sporting facilities.

More significantly he also reckons that the government, besides the corporate sector, has a responsibility to create the sports infrastructure to let the common man engage himself in healthy activities.

The visionary and responsible government officers like him, who believe in meeting the challenge and overcoming the obstacles, are the ones who bring about a change despite the shortcomings in the system. It’s easier said than done.

Shoaib Siddiqui gladdened the hearts of the enthusiasts of the sport of bowling by supporting one of their tournaments recently which was organized by the Sindh Tenpin Bowling Association with the venue being the bustling Thunder Pins housed in Millennium Mall which is one of the favourite destinations for the youth of Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Gulistan-e-Jauhar and other adjoining areas.

It was the first ranking bowling event to be staged in Pakistan, made possible by the Sindh Sports Board (SSB). It was a major accomplishment for the organizers who had also made an appearance in the 13th Sindh Games 2010 held in Karachi.

The inaugural Sindh Inter-League Bowling Tournament 2010 was acclaimed as a success story with about 50 bowlers having registered in the masters and amateur categories. The outstanding performers of the landmark three-day were rewarded with cash prizes besides certificates and trophies.

Hanif Mohammad Mirchawala, Director Sports, Government of Sindh, was the chief guest in the presentation ceremony of the tournament having been inaugurated by the departmental chief, Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui.

“I suggest that the Sindh Sport Board should provide us with the space to open up a bowling arena in terms of private-public partnership. We are trying our level best to make this sports reachable for every class, a technician who won gold dedal in 13thSindh Games Tenpin Bowling Event 2010 amateur category is the living example,” Romis Ali General Secretary, STBA, observed in his welcome speech.

Top Seed Shabbir Lashkarwala lived up to the billing to become the first Sindh Inter-League champion by scoring an average of 172. He was also the gold medalist in the13th Sindh Games 2010 Tenpin Bowling event.

Rashid Ali, Syed Zubair and Aleem Agha claimed the next three positions in the masters’ category with Mahmood Ahmed claiming the award for the highest score of 236.

Abdullah Tahir emerged the champion in the amateur singles while the next three positions were shared by Shahjahan, Abid Ahmed and Faizan Tariq. Abdullah Tahir got another prize for his being the top scorer with 214.

Sindh Whites, comprising of Khawaja Ahmed, Zubair Ali, Naeem, and Abdullah Tahi, won the team event with Sindh Green, featuring Robert, Shahjahan, Sarim and Mahmood Ahmed, finishing as the runner-up and Sindh Blues, containing Naseem Ahmed Qureshi, Shabbir Lashkerwala, Farhan Riaz and Abid Ahmed, getting third position.

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Shoaib Siddiqui inaugurates Sindh bowling tournament

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The sports department of the Government of Sindh has been taking keen interest in carrying out its responsibilities and ensuring healthy activities for the youth of the province on a regular basis for the last couple of years.

Having proactively supported the regular as well as the indigenous sports, it’s very heartening to find them promoting the newer games that don’t generally get recognized at the government level.

Bowling is one of the most popular games among the youth of the urban areas and boys and girls are passionate about it in a big way. Even the elders are into it as well. It may not be entirely classified as an elite sport but it’s commonly practiced mainly at the big social clubs.

The Sindh Tenpin Bowling Association (STBA) took the initiative of organizing the Sindh Inter League Bowling Tournament 2010 at the Thunder Pins housed in Karachi’s famous Millennium Mall located on Rashid Minhas Road, Guslshan-e-Iqbal.

Tremendous enthusiasm was witnessed as the tournament was inaugurated by the popular figure of Shoaib Ahmad Siddiqui, Secretary, Sports and Youth Affairs, Government of Sindh, who was the chief guest in the opening ceremony.

In his brief speech on the occasion he acknowledged the massive following of bowling and expressed the hope that the organizers will continue to work with the same zeal to hold competitions in future.

“The government remains committed to patronizing healthy and sporting activities in the society. We are more than glad to extend our support to the game of bowling,” Shoaib Siddiqui added.

“We have been promoting bowling and we are discovering bowling stars. We have had to face tough challenges in launching the Sindh Inter League Bowling Tournament 2010 which is a major initiative and accomplishment of a milestone of sorts in the history of bowling in Pakistan,” Romis Ali, General Secretary, STBA, said in the welcome speech.

Meanwhile 70% of the players qualified for the second round in both amateur and master categories. Robert was on the top with 739 points with Aleem Agha placed at position with 730 points. Naseem Ahmed claimed third position with 697 points.

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KPC Sports Festival concludes with a fabulous ceremony

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The prize distribution ceremony of the Karachi Press Club’s Summer Sports Festival 2010, held on July 30, turned out to be quite an event with the likes of Dr Mohammad Ali Shah and Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui making the occasion a memorable one.

The Ibrahim Jalees Hall was already packed to capacity when Shoaib Siddiqui, Secretary Sports & Youth Affairs to the Government of Sindh, arrived at 6.45 pm and then the convoy of Dr Shah reached the club within the next 15 minutes.

As planned the ceremony started at a few minutes past seven and the intensity remained high until the prizes were distributed after speeches by the two dignitaries and the top officials of the club.

As promised cash awards were disbursed among the top three position holders of all five tournaments. The winners were presented Rs 5,000 each and those having ended runner-up received Rs 3,000 each. There was also a purse of Rs 2,000 for each of those having finished third in their respective events.
Besides the cash there was also an incentive in the shape of a certificate of merit, documenting the award and carrying the signatures of Dr Mohammad Ali Shah, Shoaib Ahmed, Imtiaz Khan Faran, A H Khanzada and Syed Khalid Mahmood.

Khurram Baig, who won the table tennis tournament, was quick to remark that he would cherish the certificate and preserve it for a while. The statement was reflective of his positive mindset.

The other award winners were also quite delighted and it was very heartening indeed that all of them turned up to receive the award personally from the chief guest. A couple of them reached the venue a few minutes late but most importantly they made it and their moment of glory was seized by the camera.

The speeches of Dr Mohammad Ali Shah and Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui were music to the ears of the members of the Karachi Press Club who were thoroughly praised for their enthusiasm in the field of sports besides discharging their professional duties.

They were appreciative of the sporting spirit of the Governing Body of the club that took the decision to revive the Sports Festival.

The KPC officials present on the occasion also did not let go the opportunity of recognizing the monumental efforts of Dr Shah and Shoaib Siddiqui in bringing sports to life throughout the province. They have also been instrumental in building a solid relationship between the sports department of the Government of Sindh and the KPC.

Following were the prize winners:
Snooker: Masroor Afzal Pasha (Daily Times) 1st; Faizan Lakhani (Geo TV) 2nd; Qasim Khan (Dawn TV) 3rd
Chess: Anwar Mooraj (Freelance) 1st; Mohammad Shahid (Monthly Fanoos) 2nd; Hasan Mansoor (AFP) 2nd.
Scrabble: Mohammad Shahid (Monthly Fanoos) 1st; Mohammad Afaq (Daily Muqadma) 2nd; Irshad Ali (Aaj TV) 3rd.
Badminton: Jahangir Khan (APP) 1st; Azhar Sultan (Samaa TV) 2nd; Kaleemuddin (Geo TV) 3rd.
Table Tennis: Khurram Baig (Express Tribune) 1st; Mohammad Azhar (Din) 2nd; Mahmood Ahmed Khan (Mahshar) 3rd.

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Dr Shah praises KPC for organizing Sports Festival

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The curtain fell on the Karachi Press Club (KPC) Summer Sports Festival 2010 with a fabulous prize distribution ceremony at the club’s Ibrahim Jalees Hall on July 30.

Sindh Sports Minister, Dr Syed Mohammad Ali Shah, who had reached Karachi from London earlier in the morning, was accorded a very warm welcome as he reached the KPC at the designated time of 7 pm to preside over the function.

In his speech on the occasion, Dr Shah, who is also the President of the Sindh Olympic Association (SOA), commended the Governing Body of the KPC for having revived the Sports Festival and he vowed to support it in the future as well.

“We would be more than glad to support even more than one Sports Festival in a year at the KPC. So be prepared to hold a Winter Sports Festival later this year in which the sports department of the Government of Sindh will extend your institution similar support,” Dr Shah announced.

“The media professionals are not too dissimilar to the doctors who have to be on their toes all the time. It’s really very heartening that the KPC members squeezed time to compete in the tournaments so enthusiastically,” he noted.

“It has always been a pleasure to be at the KPC. In fact I find the atmosphere very homely here. It’s my own club and I would be more than glad to contribute my bit in its further development,” Dr Shah remarked.

He shared his SOA experiences, recalling that there was barely Rs 13,000 or so in its account for decades but he has now turned it around by securing a grant of Rs four million from the Sindh Chief Minister, Syed Qaim Ali Shah, besides getting approved an annual grant of Rs 10 million.

Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui, Secretary Sports & Youth Affairs to the Government of Sindh, who played the pivotal role in facilitating the KPC Sports Festival, delivered a brief speech in which he expressed his delight with the success of the event.

“The sports department is always there to implement the policies of our versatile minister, Dr Shah, who had appreciated the idea of the revival of the KPC Sports Festival while readily agreeing to offer support for the venture,” Shoaib Siddiqui observed.

The President of the KPC, Imtiaz Khan Faran, paid glowing tributes to Dr Shah and Shoaib Siddiqui for having fulfilled their promise so quickly that enabled the Sports Festival to start and finish at the scheduled time.

The Secretary of the KPC, A H Khanzada, expressed similar sentiments and he dwelled on the development of a Mini Sports Complex in the backyard of the club, seeking help from the Government of Sindh for this project.

Dr Mohammad Ali Shah, the chief guest of the evening, and Shoaib Siddiqui then distributed cash prizes and certificates among the top three position holders of all the five tournaments held during the month-long festival having been inaugurated on June 30.

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Shoaib Siddiqui inaugurates KPC Summer Sports Festival 2010

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

It was a very pleasant evening on March 30 when Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui, Secretary Sports & Youth Affairs to the Government of Sindh, formally inaugurated the KPC Summer Sports Festival 2010 with a crisp stroke on the snooker table.

The festival, being organized by the Sports Committee, with the collaboration of the Indoor Games Committee, at the Karachi Press Club from June 30 to July 24, had actually commenced a couple of hours before the inauguration ceremony.

A session was held at the Ibrahim Jalees Hall of the KPC which was presided over by Shoaib Siddiqui with Tariq Rasheed Khan, President, Pakistan Bridge Federation (PBF), and Alamgir Anwar Shaikh, President, Pakistan Billiards & Snooker Association (PBSA), also gracing the occasion alongwith Dr Farhan Essa, Chairman, Karachi Table Tennis Association (KTTA).

They were presented the traditional gift of Ajrak by the office-bearers and senior members of the Karachi Press Club.

In his opening remarks, the KPC Secretary, A H Khanzada, briefly threw light on the history of the club and expressing his joy at the revival of the sports festival for the members.

The KPC President, Imtiaz Khan Faran, recognized the importance of sports in building a healthy society and he expected the members of the club to participate in the sports festival with great enthusiasm.

The chief guest of the evening, Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui, showered the working journalists with praise for having taking up a challenging profession and performing their duties in the most demanding of situations.

He recalled the services of the KPC members in spreading information, making a particular mention of the former Presidents Sabihuddin Ghausi and Najeeb Ahmed who expired last year.

Shoaib Siddiqui spoke about the importance of the role of media in sports in particular and he acknowledged their contribution in a big way. He welcomed the revival of the sports festival at the KPC and assured his total support to the venture.

Shoaib Siddiqui was then escorted to the snooker hall where he performed the formal inauguration of the sports festival. He was highly appreciative of the arrangements made for the various tournaments.

As many as five games, snooker, chess, scrabble, badminton and table tennis, will be contested during the festival which is being supported by the sports department of the Government of Sindh.

The festival, offering cash awards to top performers, has commenced with the snooker tournament which will continue till July 3 and it will be followed by chess and scrabble (July 5 to 10), badminton (July 12 to 17) and table tennis (July 19 to 24).

The snooker tournament is being held with the collaboration of the Pakistan Billiards & Snooker Association (PBSA) who have deputed Shoaib Alam Khan, an international referee, to conduct the event.

The Mind Sports Association of Pakistan (MSAP) has pledged to offer technical assistance for the chess and scrabble tournaments while the Karachi Table Tennis Association (KTTA) has agreed to join hands with the KPC in holding the table tennis tournament.

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