KARACHI – Pakistan Ju-Jitsu Federation (PJJF) secured another feather in the cap by winning Gold Medal in the World Ju-Jitsu E- Tournament held by the International Ju-Jitsu Federation (JJIF).
For the first time in history, the tournament was overpopulated as 371 teams participated from 31 countries around the world.
Pakistani contestants namely Isra Waseem and Kainat Arif made the country proud by securing Gold medal at the World Ju-Jitsu E Tournament’s Junior category. Pakistan was represented for the first time in the said category.
The Gold medal-winning duo maintained a consistently brilliant show throughout the tournament. They had been training in Karachi amid the ongoing COVID 19 pandemic and it clearly paid off.
Tariq Ali, who also doubled up as a referee in this said e-tournament, revealed that the PJJF would be sending junior players in the junior category to more events in the future to prepare them for senior-level tournaments.
“It is crucial to give our young players the exposure and opportunities to gain more experience so that they can be as confident as the athletes from other countries,” he said.
Meanwhile, PJJF top administration including President Khalil Ahmed Khan and General Secretary Waqar Ilyas Khan and Director Referees Kazim Ali congratulated the young duo on winning the Gold-medal.
General Secretary PJJF Mr. Waqar said that Pakistan’s performance at international ju-jitsu events has always been credible, but the sport suffers from lack of resources and financial backing from the government. Pakistan Sports Board has not released a single penny to PJJF since 2017.
Despite the financial constraint ju-jitsu federation faces in Pakistan, Mr. Waqar revealed that the federation will try to hire a foreign coach to train the country’s athletes for the upcoming big events such as Asian Games, Asian Indoor Games & Asian Beach Games in 2022.
Isra waseem and Kainat Arif’s win proves that Pakistan has amazing talent even when it comes to non-traditional sports.
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