GHAZNI CITY (Pajhwok): A one-day friendly spear-throwing competition was held in southern Ghazni province, featuring 43 teams and 172 athletes from eight provinces. Teams from Ghazni secured first and second places, while Paktia finished third.
Athletes from Kabul, Logar, Paktia, Paktika, Khost, Maidan Wardak, Zabul and Ghazni provinces participated in the competition.
Bilal Mujahid, head of the Physical Education and Sports Department, told Pajhwok Afghan News that the competition was organised to strengthen sporting ties among the provinces, promote cooperation among athletes and further develop spear-throwing in Ghazni.
He said the competition was held in the section category, in which four horses compete at a time.
According to Mujahid, the Ghazni City team secured first place, followed by the Waghaz district team of Ghazni in second place and the Paktia provincial team in third.
Mujahid said the competition was organised in coordination with the Spear-Throwing Federation and the Olympic Department, with financial support from young people, tribal elders and traders from Andar district.
Mohammad Anwar Andar, a representative of the Spear-Throwing Federation, said the sport had made significant progress over the past three to four years.
He said spear-throwing is one of Afghanistan’s traditional sports and that decades of insecurity had hindered its development. However, he added that the sport was now gaining popularity again.
The athletes welcomed the organisation of such competitions, saying joint events involving athletes from different provinces provided opportunities to gain experience and improve their skills.
Ghazni spear-throwers Fati Mohammad Shalkarwal and Haji Iqbal called for suitable grounds to be built for the sport and for its traditional aspects to be further developed.
Haji Niaz Mohammad, a spear-thrower from Paktika, said competitions involving athletes from different provinces offered a valuable opportunity to gain experience. He expressed hope that such events would be expanded in the future.
At the end of the competition, motorcycles, cash prizes and trophies were presented to the first-, second- and third-place winners by the Spear-Throwing Federation and tournament officials.
It is worth mentioning that last week, the Afghanistan Spear-Throwing and Buzkashi Federation also officially organised a three-day spear-throwing tournament in Ghazni, featuring teams from six provinces.
hz/sa
