Pakistani athletes shine at Special Olympics World Winter Games by winning several medals in Austria.
Pakistani athletes ended Special Olympics World Winter Games 2017 with the 16 medals in Austria. The closing ceremony of Special Olympics Winter Games 2017 was held in Graz Austria.
Over 3,000 Special Olympics athletes from 110 countries participated in the 2017 Winter Games. Pakistan’s 16-member contingent athletes have claimed total sixteen medals, including three gold, seven silver and six bronze medals at the event.
Eight out of 12 athletes took part in snowshoeing race, while four participated in cross-country skiing.
Pakistan won three gold medals: Huzaifa bagged the first in the 200m snowshoeing race, Sabahat Tariq the second in the 100m race, while Pakistan’s girls’ team took the top position in 4×100 relay race to claim the third gold for Pakistan.
Meanwhile, Pakistan also claimed seven silver medals, with two each won by Fatima Amir and Pervez Ahmed, and six bronze medals.
Pakistan were fielding 12 athletes including Huzaifa, Muhammad Hamza Aslam, Hameezuddin, Usama Aziz, Muhammad Abdullah, Pervez, Sabahat, Fatima, Farah Ehsan, Mehwish Tufail, Rimsha Naeem and Tehmeena.
The Manager of the Pakistani delegation, Aneesur Rehman, told media that the athletes were returning to their country with pleasant memories.
He said the Winter World Games had given a new enthusiasm to the Pakistani special athletes.
The head of Pakistan Olympics Association has appreciated the performance and said the results are highly commendable.
Chief Minister Punjab Shehbaz Shareef also congratulated the special athletes on their stunning win in Special Olympics 2017.
PSL franchise Peshawar Zalmi’s owner, Javed Afridi, announced a cash award of Rs100,000 for Pakistanis medallist who won medals at the Special Olympics World Winter Games.
Javid Afridi, whose Zalmi franchise were last month crowned winners of the second edition of the Pakistan Super League, termed the medallists “national heroes”.
The closing ceremony of the Games took place on March 25, while the Pakistan squad will be returning home Monday 27th March.