A number of festivals and competitions are taking place as heavy snowfall is experienced in the northern parts of the country.
PAF Winter Sports Festival
One of the major winter sports festival was held at the picturesque PAF Ski Resort in Naltar from January 19 – 24. President Dr. Arif Alvi, who was the chief guest on the occasion, said that the cooperation between the public and armed forces has led to a peaceful Pakistan where tourism is now booming. He appreciated the efforts of PAF and WSFP for the promotion of winter sports in Pakistan. He also congratulated all stakeholders for successfully holding these events.
He also distributed the prizes for a large number of sports that concluded. Gilgit Baltistan Scouts was awarded the 28th National Ski Championship Trophy. Pakistan’s two-time winter Olympian Mohammad Karim of Pakistan Air Force was awarded gold medals in both Slalom and Giant Slalom categories.
15th Shah Khan Alpine Ski Cup was awarded to the team of Pakistan Air Force with PAF skier Naveed being awarded the gold medal. Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Ski Cup was awarded to Gilgit Baltistan Scouts. Waqar Junior was awarded gold and a silver medal. In the Slalom category, former Olympian Mohammad Abbas from Pakistan Air Force was awarded a Gold medal. In the Giant Slalom category Waqar Junior of GB Scouts bagged the Gold medal.
The Ice Speed Skating Championship trophy was awarded to the team of Gilgit Baltistan Ski Association. Israr Ahmed of Gilgit Baltistan Ski Association was awarded the Gold medal. Gilgit Baltistan Ski Association was also awarded trophy for winning 3rd Ice Hockey Championship.
Galiyat Snow Festival
The Galiyat Snow Festival, which was organized by the Galiyat Development Authority (GDA), proved to be a success with scores of people coming out to enjoy fun activities in the snow with their families. Many of the participants had come from far off areas in the country, which shows their love for healthy fun.
The three-day long festival was held at different venues of Galyat including Nathiagali, Ayubia, Donga Gali, Khanaspur and Mushkpuri top to introduce the many beautiful places in the Galiyar region to the rest of the country.
Activities such as tug-of-war, snowman, and snow race were carried out along with local cuisine on offer. Other sports events including snowballing, skiing, tagging and snow football competitions. A musical evening was also arranged with renowned names singing away into the night.
The event was inaugurated by provincial Minister for Information Kamran Bangash. The event was also attended by K-P Assembly Speaker Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani. Other members of the provincial assembly and dignitaries also attended the event.
Malam Jabba Fest
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Culture and Tourism Authority (KP-CTA) and the Samson Group of Companies jointly organized Pakistan International Snowboarding Championship and Festival began in Swat. Participants from 44 countries will be taking part in the competition. Malam Jabba is the only civil skiing resort in Pakistan at about 8,500 height.
The event also included stalls of local cuisine, which is a big hit with both domestic and international tourists. The event also took place last year and garnered a decent participation. However, greater participation has been observed this year, especially in terms of people coming from overseas.
Chitral Snow Sports Festival
The four-day long snow sports festival will begin in Madak Lusht village of Sheshi Koh valley here from 29th of January. Along with the local and national teams, some foreign teams are also expected to participate. The event is being partly sponsored by the tourism department. The event is organized by the Hindu Kush Snow Sports Club.
The club president, Shahzada Hisham said that the extreme weather with lots of snow is perfect for winter sports. The locals indulge in skiing and skating in their local versions and with some emphasis on improving the infrastructure and training, snow sports can very much grow in Pakistan as well.