LAHORE: Various colorful segments of the Lahore Horse & Cattle Show began here on Monday, including tent-pegging – the core component of the show – at the Fortress Stadium and Banyan Tree Polo Ground.

The event was inaugurated a day earlier by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. The show featured competitions of tent pegging, mounted archery, buzkashi and Shandur polo.

Thirteen international teams, representing Qatar, Kuwait, Egypt, Norway, the USA, South Africa, Oman, Turkey, Kazakhstan and other countries are also participating in the tent-pegging and mounted archery events.

Over 50 teams, consisting of more than 250 riders, will showcase their skills in the tent-pegging championship.

Both local and international equestrians will perform spectacular lance fighting displays in individual, double, and triple events. More than 50 foreign players are competing in the championship.

A large number of spectators attended the tent-pegging and mounted archery competitions.

“After three decades, an international-level Horse and Cattle Show is being held in Punjab, with local team competitions taking place at Fortress Stadium and international team competitions at Banyan Tree Polo Ground,” Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA) Chairman Ghazali Saleem Butt told the media at the venue.

PHA Director-General Muhammad Tahir Wattoo said on the occasion that the show events will offer entertainment opportunities and high-quality facilities to the visitors.

He added that thenational and international tent-pegging team competitions are scheduled for Feb 11 and 12. The mounted archery competitions will take place at Banyan Tree Polo Ground on Feb 12, while the buzkashi competition will be held at the Fortress Stadium on Feb 15, followed by the Shandur polo contest the same day, he added.

Published in Dawn, February 11th, 2025