Pakistan Army participated in the 35th National Games on Wednesday, bagging 113 gold medals after sweeping titles in athletics, swimming and several team events.
At the end of an exciting day here, Pakistan Army was on top of the medal standings with 113 gold, 50 silver and 34 bronze medals.
Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) remained second in the rankings with 46 gold medals, followed by Pakistan Navy in third place with 24 top honours.
The action-packed day began with the 42.195 kilometer men’s marathon, in which Pakistan Navy’s Shahbaz Masih took the top honor by completing the course, which started at the Quaid-e-Azam Monument and passed through multiple city routes, in 2 hours and 25 minutes.
Sher Khan of Wapda finished second, while Shoaib Akhtar of Pakistan Navy bagged third place.
Wapda’s Faiqa Riaz continued her exceptional run at the Games by winning the women’s long jump with a leap of 5.52 metres, completing a hat-trick of gold medals after earlier triumphs in the 100m and 200m events.
Pakistan Army’s dominance extended to athletics as Usman Ali (men’s 200m), Mohammad Akhtar (10,000m) and Ismail (400m) added more golds for the department.
Wapda, on the other hand, swept several women’s athletics categories, with Uzma Awan winning the hammer throw, Iram Shehzadi prevailing in 1,500 meters, while Ghazala Ramzan triumphed in 100 meters hurdles.
In swimming, Ahmed Durrani of the Army completed the double hat-trick of gold medals, having achieved six laurels for his department after adding victories in the 800m freestyle, 200m freestyle and 200m relay.
Wapda’s Hamza Asif broke a national record in the men’s 50m breaststroke, while Jehanara Nabi continued her strong performances in women’s swimming and Hareem bagged another gold for Sindh.
The Pakistan Army also excelled in rowing, winning five golds and one silver, while the Pakistan Navy bagged two golds and five silvers.
In women’s weightlifting, honors were split, with notable wins going to Pakistan Army’s Khadija Waheed (69kg) and Sonia Azmat (77kg), and Wapda’s Nazia Aslam (over 86kg) and Nadia Maqsood (86kg).
In shooting, Pakistan Navy added four more gold medals to its growing tally, while Pakistan Army bagged two.
Furthermore, in the Karate events, the Pakistan Army also maintained supremacy in both the men’s and women’s categories.
The Pakistan Army also dominated team sports, defeating Wapda to win gold in women’s football and softball. They enjoyed an unbeaten run in the single league format of football.
Meanwhile, the Squash events have moved into the decisive stage, with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Mahnoor Ali and Pakistan Army’s Zainab reaching the women’s final, while Wapda’s Noor Zaman and Pakistan Army’s Huzaifa Ibrahim advanced to the men’s singles title match.
