Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Punjab won the 4th Inter-Provincial Games with 139 medals scoring 3235 points while hosts Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) ended runners-up with 120 medals followed by Sindh at third position. The awards for the teams were announced in the concluding ceremony held at the Qayyum Sports Complex in Peshawar on Tuesday. Punjab accumulated 65 gold, 44 silver and 30 bronze medals while KP grabbed 37 gold, 46 silver and 37 bronze medals scoring 2532 points while Sindh with 17 gold, 16 silver and 40 bronze medals secured1557points. Balochistan who shone in the martial arts games, secured 24 gold, 34 silver and 34 bronze medals finishing fourth.

FATA, with 25 medals ended fifth followed by Islamabad on sixth with 40 and also won the fair-play award. Azad and Jammu Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan ended seventh end eighth respectively.

In swimming, Sindh grabbed all 16 gold and 13 silver medals, securing 196 points to take first position. Balochistan ended second, followed by KP and Punjab. KP dominated the men’s boxing event with three gold as many bronze medals while Sindh stood second by winning four silver and three bronze medals. In the women’s boxing category, Punjab took the top spot. In archery, Punjab won five gold medals in men’s singles, women’s singles and men and women and mixed team events. Punjab defeated KP in a thrilling kabaddi final by 47-38. In the hockey final, Punjab defeated KP by 7-3 in a one-sided affair. Punjab dominated the game right from the word go and scored one after the other, paralysing the KP defence line. In the basketball final Punjab defeated KP by 51-49. Governor KP Iqbal Zafar Jhagra gave away trophies to the position holders` contingents.

Published in Daily Times, March 22^nd 2018.