Director General Sports Punjab Javed Chohan congratulates winners of Punjab Qualifying Chess Championship

Tuesday, May 31, 2022

Director General Sports Punjab Javed Chohan has congratulated all the winners of Punjab Qualifying Chess Championship 2022 including Champion Syed Muhammad Ali and runner-up Nazar Hussain.

In his greeting message on Tuesday, Director General Sports Punjab Javed Chohan said that the players have performed brilliantly in the chess championship. “There is a lot of chess talent in Punjab, and we are providing best platform for the youth to express their abilities and we are happy that the youth are also availing these opportunities to the fullest”.

Director General Sports Punjab Javed Chohan said Sports Board Punjab is taking important steps to promote the game of chess. “A few months ago, a mega chess event was organized in which more than 600 players participated”.

Director General Sports Punjab Javed Chohan further said that youth should participate in sports events with full enthusiasm and try to clinch laurels for the country.

Syed Muhammad Ali of Gujranwala won the Punjab Qualifying Chess Championship 2022 held under the auspices of Sports Board Punjab and Punjab Chess Association while Nazar Hussain and Rashid Rafique of Sheikhupura bagged the second and third positions respectively.

16-time National Champion and International Chess Master Mahmood Lodhi was the guest of honour at the closing ceremony. He distributed trophies and cash prizes among the winners and other top performers of the event.

More than 100 top players from all over Punjab participated in the Punjab Chess Qualifying Championship organised at Nishtar Park Sports Complex Gymnasium Hall. Some players participated in the championship through wild card entry. The top 14 players in the championship will represent Punjab in the National Chess Championship to be held in June. The top five players of National Chess Championship will be selected to participate in International Chess Olympiad scheduled to be staged in India in July this year.

The players who have qualified to represent Punjab team in upcoming National Chess Championship include Aqib Javed Butt (Lahore), Rashid Pervez (Sargodha), Iftikhar Ali (Gujranwala), Fauzanullah (Lahore), Shehryar Najmi (Lahore), Ali Akbar (Toba Tek Singh), Zaman Sohail (Lahore), Junaid Sohail (Lahore), Jahanzeb Sohail (Rawalpindi), Asadullah (Lahore) and Atiq Manzoor (Lahore).

President of the Punjab Chess Association appreciated the efforts of Director General Sports Punjab Javed Chohan for promoting the mind games in Punjab. Director General Sports Punjab Javed Chohan also congratulated Raja Gohar Iqbal, General Secretary Punjab Chess Association, Umar Farooq, Joint Secretary and Master Amir Karim.