KARACHI, June 3: In a fine, well coordinated effort to enhance the mental skills of students through healthy activities, a Mind Sports Association of Pakistan (MSA) was launched in an impressive ceremony at a local hotel here on Tuesday.

A brainchild of Khurshid Hadi, President Pakistan Bridge Federation, the MSA will initially be focusing on ten colleges and universities by providing an organizer for each institution to develop chess, bridge and scrabble clubs and college teams at these selected institutions.

Mind Sports comprise all sports that develop mental skills and in the first stage chess, bridge and scrabble have been selected where there is a formal structure and which can be efficiently promoted.

Hadi announced the holding of national mind sports games in August this year to select teams for representation at the first Mind Sport Games scheduled for October at Beijing.

The MSA will associate with International Mind Sport Association which will be liaising with International Olympic Committee (IOC), UNESCO and the United Nations to promote mind sports skills and activities amongst the youth. MSA will submit its programme to the Pakistan Sports Board and Sports Trust shortly for support.—Agencies