KARACHI: Pakistan’s top athletes — led by Rayan Awan and Faiqa Riaz — rose to new heights and glories in the pool, on the track and at the courts, cementing their dominance at the 35th National Games on Thursday.

Rayan, who represents Pakistan Army, shaved nearly 1.5 seconds from his own national record in the men’s 100m breaststroke — a mammoth feat in a sprint swimming event. The 1:09.42 he set last year was superbly lowered to 1:07.99 on Thursday afternoon to wrap up three days of swimming at the KMC Sports Complex, where digital scoreboards yet again kept swimmers waiting in suspense of their accomplishments.

It paled in comparison to the 24-hour delay Hamza Asif endured for his 50m freestyle record, which was created on Wednesday but ratified and announced on Thursday due to an initial tabulation error, the Pakistan Swimming Federation admitted to Dawn.

This was Rayan’s redemption after the 50m breaststroke national record that he broke after 17 years was crushed in just four months by Wapda’s Hamza on Wednesday.

“We’ll fight back for it next year,” the 16-year-old UK-based swimmer chuckled.

Ali Mitha brought Sindh their second gold in the 50m backstroke and narrowly missed out on the national record he was aiming for.

All four of Sindh’s gold medals on the women’s side were from powerhouse Hareem Malik, whose breaststroke dominance shone through to seal her victory in the 200m Individual Medley.

Army’s 13-year-old Riah Mirza won her second gold in the 50m backstroke and topped it off with a third in the relay, which Army won by less than half a second after overtaking Sindh at the finish.

Sindh’s Zoya Hafiz won her first national medal at the tender age of 12, then followed it up with her second and third in the span of an hour.

“If my teacher asks why I failed my midterm exams, at least I can say it’s because I was winning national medals,” she joked.

As expected, Jehanara Nabi and Ahmed Durrani were crowned best female and male swimmer respectively after effortlessly bagging five gold medals each and leading Army to overall trophy wins. The women won 12 gold while the men bagged 15 golds.

“I congratulate all those who won gold medals despite the Army’s dominance,” Pakistan Olympic Association President Arif Saeed to giggles and widened eyes from the crowd in his short speech as chief guest for the women’s session.

He highlighted that the LA 2028 Olympics — a dream coveted by several of this swimming this week — will have majority female participation for the first time in history, and the growing relevance and support for women’s swimming in Pakistan was much appreciated.

“To take Pakistan forward we need to take small steps,” Arif said as he emphasised the need for more personal best times and national records when competing internationally.

“Big things come to those who dream,” he said in a fitting end to the sport’s three days of competition.

Army dominated on open water just as well in it to triumph in 10 rowing events on the final day. Navy clinched gold in the men’s and women’s double sculls, women’s lightweight double sculls, and men’s pairs.

The squash courts saw similar triumphs as Army’s Zainab Khan claimed the women’s individual title, beating KPK’s Mahnoor Ali 3-1. National squash icon Noor Zaman of Wapda captured the men’s individual gold 3-1 win over Army’s Huzaifa Ibrahim. Army won both the men’s and women’s team events.

SCRIPT FLIPPED

Wapda flipped the script on Army under the bright lights at North Nazim­abad Gymkhana in a commanding sweep of the basketball events.

The men’s team dethroned perennial rivals Pakistan Army in a fierce 56-48 final, powered by 21-point performances from stars Zain Hassan Khan and Mohammad Junaid Amjad.

The Wapda women secured a golden double, overpowering Punjab 50-36.

“Army has been our main rival. They always beat us, so it’s great to finally have a win,” a triumphant Zain told Dawn, crediting their focused strategy.

The mood was starkly different at the athletics venue.

Nine-year-old Kainat, a bronze medallist in the 10,000 meters, was barred from the 5,000-meter race minutes before the start. Her coach Abubakr called the decision “arbitrary and intimidating”.

“We were made aware of the decision just 30 minutes before the race,” Abubakr told Dawn. “Kainat was 100 per cent ready; she would’ve even won a medal.”

Officials cited International Olympic Committee rules as the reason, though the coach revealed Kainat had undergone the full qualification process unchallenged.

“They told us that previously she wasn’t highlighted that much, so we let her compete,” AbuBakr quoted officials as saying.

The situation escalated at the call room. “We thought it’s business as usual, but officials said Kainat’s name was not listed,” he stated, alleging the omission was made by Technical Official Incharge Tariq Sidhu.

When Abubakr attempted to confront Sidhu, he claimed the official issued a threat. “He threatened that they would even retract her 10,000m bronze.”

The coach further lamented that their team manager, Gohar Raza, did not contest the decision, leaving the young athlete without recourse.

Amid this discord, athletes delivered standout performances.

Wapda displayed remarkable depth by sweeping the women’s heptathlon podium as Milhan took gold ahead of Arooj and Munaza. There was a one-two finish in the women’s 5,000m by Maria and Farhat while Gonish of Higher Education Commission (HEC) took bronze.

In field action, Wapda’s Sheroz soared to gold in the men’s high jump as Army’s Ahmed Faraz and Fahadullah completed the podium.

The men’s decathlon crown was seized by Army’s Ahmed, followed by team-mate Ali Asghar, highlighting Army’s prowess in the multi-event discipline.

The relay events closed the session with thrilling team efforts.

Wapda’s women stormed to victory in the 4x400m — track star Faiqa Riaz clinching her fourth gold of the Games — followed by Sindh, while the Army men edged out Wapda in a dramatic men’s 4x400m final as HEC claimed third.

ARCHERY RECORDS

In archery, Army and Wapda won two gold medals each while Navy secured one. Sindh registered a historic breakthrough by earning their first-ever silver and bronze medals in the discipline. Two national records fell: Army’s Raja Sheraz Azam and Mohammad Asif posted a new individual record of 720/616, while the team registered 1838 points to set another.

Army’s Iqra Farooq won the women’s recurve gold, and Navy’s Rashid Masood topped the men’s recurve. Wapda won the women’s team and mixed team events, while Army secured the men’s team gold.

In women’s weightlifting, Army dominated the middle and heavier categories. Gold medals were won by Shafaq Waheed (48kg, Wapda), Nida Fatima (53kg, Army), Arjumand Khan (58kg, Army), Noor Fatima (63kg, Army), Khadija Waheed (69kg, Army), Sonia Arshad (77kg, Army), Nadia Maqsood (86kg, Wapda) and Nazia Aslam (+86kg, Wapda).

Taekwondo also saw Army sweep both the men’s and women’s titles, as well as the women’s football gold.

Meanwhile in fencing, Balochistan won women’s foil gold while Punjab triumphed in the women’s épée event.

In Sepak Takraw, Sindh Whites overcame Sindh 17-14, 15-7, 15-13 to win the men’s title, while Sindh won the women’s gold by defeating Sindh Whites 15-9, 15-8.

Over at the Kakri Ground, Wapda emerged triumphant over Army in wrestling. Both departments entered the final bout tied with four golds each. The deciding 125kg clash between Army’s Mohammad Asif Mochi and Wapda’s Tayyab Raza lived up to its billing, with Tayyab winning 3–2 to seal Wapda’s fifth gold. Army finished with four golds, while Punjab took third place with two.

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2025