Shandur polo festival concludes

The three-day polo festival at the highest playground in the world ended in the Shandur valley of Chitral on Sunday.

Thousands of local and international tourists participated in the event. A large tent city had been established at Shandur on the bank of a natural lake surrounded by lofty mountains which otherwise remains a wilderness round the year.

There is no permanent human settlement in the valley as it is used as pasturage by locals during summers only.

The final match of the festival was played between Chitral A and Gilgit A.

It was a match full of suspense as Chitral scored four goals against Gilgit’s seven during the first half. Over-exhausted steeds of the Gilgit team, however, gave way to a swift victory of Chitral which scored six more goals in the second half. Gilgit managed to score only two goals in this round, thus ensuring Chitral’s victory.

It may be recalled that Chitral has been winning the final match for the past one decade. A total of seven matches were played during the festival out of which Chitral won five.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 4^th, 2022.