ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Thursday expressed his optimism about the revival of hockey in the country and reiterated full support and backing to the national support.
Addressing a ceremony held here at Prime Minister House, to honour the Pakistan hockey team for their outstanding performance in the Azlan Shah tournament, the Prime Minister also made a cash prize announcement along with a pledge to provide suitable jobs to the players of the national team.
Meanwhile, the prime minister appreciated the green shirts for their outstanding performance in the Azlan Shah Hockey Cup while bringing happiness among fans after a long time adding that the superb display by the players in the event has made the nation proud.
The ceremony was attended by prominent figures including Federal ministers and former hockey players including Shahbaz Senior, Samiullah, Salahuddin and others.
PM lauds Hockey Team Players
In his speech, the Prime Minister further stated the entire nation was celebrating their victory adding that despite several challenges to the sport, the team managed to reach into the final.
Talking about Pakistan’s hockey performance over the past two decades, Shahbaz Sharif said that no doubt there lot of shortcomings, however, he assured the players that effective policies would be implemented promptly to address these issues and challenges.
Later the Prime Minister distributed cash prizes among the players (Rs 1 million each) as a token of appreciation for their dedication and hard work. He also assigned the concerned officials to make arrangements while providing jobs to players of the national team and provide a report to him in the regard as soon as possible.
It is worth mentioning here that Pakistan reached the final of the Azlan Shah Hockey Cup after an interval of 13 years, however, the team lost to Japan in the final. But the fans were happy about the performance of the team in the event.
