ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar on Friday wished best of luck to the hockey team for the final of Azlan Shah Hockey Cup 2024, eulogizing them as “heroes of the whole nation”. Addressing the national hockey team through video link, the minister paid tribute to the players for reviving the national game in the country by putting up remarkable performance during the Azlan Shah Hockey Cup 2024.
Flanked by Chairman of the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme (PMYP) Rana Mashhood Ahmed Khan, the minister congratulated the national team for achieving the milestone and assured them of all-out support for promoting the game. Atta Tarar said arrangements had been finalized to broadcast the final match on the Pakistan Television Sports channel. He said a dedicated campaign would be launched in the newspapers, televisions channels and social media to highlight the achievements made by the national team during the Azlan Shah Hockey Cup 2024. The minister commended the players for defeating Malaysia and drawing matches with high ranking teams such as New Zealand and Korea in the tournament. “You have outshine them and performed excellently. You are our heroes and you will win the final match InshAllah,” he added. He announced that the national team would be given a heroic welcome at the state level on their return and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif would confer awards on them. “Making to the finals is a very big achievement,” he said while lauding Head Coach Roelant Oltmans for reviving the national game. He said the prime minister was committed to promote the national sports and would make all-out efforts in that regard. “We grew up while watching penalty corners of Sohail Abbas,” he said, referring to Abu Bakar Mahmood’s penalty corner against New Zealand in the tournament that reminded him of the veteran hockey player Sohail Abbas. He extended prayers to the hockey team for the final match and said the whole nations stood by with them. “The whole nation will celebrate your win,” he said, adding a grand welcome would be accorded to the heroes on their return.