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At the Park Center Ice Ground in Upper Chitral, a hockey tournament was staged for the first time ever in Pakistani history.
The girls’ teams from several academies in Upper Chitral battled against the boys’ teams during the uncommon ice hockey event.

Eight teams altogether, made up of both boys and girls, took part in the competition.

The match between the Fox and Snow Leopard teams, which the latter won by three goals, was officiated by Canadian High Commissioner Leslie Scanlon, who was present with her daughter.

Many villagers had flocked to the location in the village’s centre where the ice surface had been built for the game with funding from the Canadian High Commission in Islamabad and facilitation by the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme and the local support group.

The public expressed a great deal of interest in the recently introduced game and was pleasantly surprised by the performance of the young players, who had been working hard over the previous two years since the Canadian government introduced ice hockey here. Ice hockey is their national sport.

Sara Shah, a female councillor, praised the young girls’ participation in the game and predicted a bright future for gender equality in the community, where girls had already achieved success in the classroom.

Leslie Scanlon, speaking at the event, noted that the topography of the region was perfect for the game, providing adequate room and a location for it, and that the game’s continuation will depend on the local populations’ interest in it.