Pakistan Hockey team on Tuesday arrived in India via the Attari-Wagah border to participate in the upcoming Asian Champions Trophy Hockey. The team reached Amritsar and will then take the flight to Chennai to participate in the tournament that is scheduled to begin on Thursday.
Also Read: Indian Men’s Hockey team arrives in Chennai for Asian Champions Trophy 2023
Only on Thursday, the Pakistan Hockey team received a no-objection certificate from the Pakistan Sports Board to participate in the event.
The team then made the travel plans to reach Amritsar via road from Lahore. On Tuesday, the the Attari-Wagah Border gates were specially opened for the team to cross the border. They were greetd by the Punjab Hockey officials and reached Amritsar through a bus. The team will arrive in Chennai by catching a flight from Amritsar later in the night on Monday.
‘Through sports, we hope to build our relationships stronger’
The Men’s Asian Champions Trophy is held annually by the Asian Hockey Federation (since 2011). It features Asia’s top six field hockey teams during that hockey season competing in a round-robin format. India and Pakistan are the joint most successful teams in this tournament’s history.
Both tea teams were the joint winners of the 2018 Men’s Asian Champions Trophy
Muhammad Saqlain coach of the Pakistan Hockey team said, “The team is travelling to Chennai to play in the Asian Champions Trophy and teams from all over Asia will feature in the tournament. Through sports, we hope to build our relationship stronger.
I believe that through the sports and film industry, our bounds will grow stronger with India. People from both countries have big hearts and treat their guests well,” he said.
Captain of the Pakistan Hockey team Muhammad Umar Bhutta said, “Sport is a good thing, it helps to build your relationship with others. There should be a lot of sports.”
Pakistan has won the tournament on three occasions. They clinched the first title in 2012, the second in 2013 and shared the trophy with India in 2018.
India won the inaugural tournament in 2011, then in 2016 and in 2018 they shared with the title with Pakistan. South Korea won the tournament in 2021.
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