A six-member women squad, comprising five athletes and one official flew to China on late Tuesday to represent Pakistan in the International University Sports Federation (FISU) Summer World University Games.
Also known as Universiade, the 12-day sports extravaganza is commencing in Chengdu from Friday. The Pakistani athletes include Amtul Rehman, Uzma Azam, Manisha Ali, Maliha Ali, Fiza and official Sumera Sattar.
Amtul Rehman, who is a student of Lahore College for Women University (LCWU) will participate in long jump and triple jump events of the Games. Uzma Azam of Government College Women University Faisalabad will showcase her skills in the hammer throw.
Lahore Garrison University’s Manisha and Maliha will be vying in the taekwondo event, while Fiza will contest in the wushu event. “We’ve selected them purely on the basis of merit. They all claimed gold medals for Higher Education Commission (HEC) in the recently-held 34th National Games in Quetta,” Sumera, who is accompanying the women athletes as manager-cum-coach told APP on Wednesday.
Sumera, who is also Director Sports at LCWU, said the athletes had been training hard since the conclusion of the National Games. “In the National Games, they outshone some of the top athletes of other departments and provinces.
That standout performance have boosted their confidence and they seem eager to perform.” “The World University Games offer a perfect chance to them to exhibit their potential at the international level.
The world’s top-notch athletes will be competing in these Games. Participation in the event will give them much-needed exposure. We are hoping they will put up an impressive show,” she added. The Chengdu 2021 Universiade will feature 269 events across 18 sports.
The Games suffered two postponements as the COVID-19 pandemic created a significant hurdle that posed substantial challenges for the preparatory work.
