Islamabad
National men and women teams will compete at the 44th World Bridge Team Championships, taking place in central China’s metropolis of Wuhan from September 14 -28. “Our men and women teams, each comprising six players will feature in the championships,” Javaid Khaliq, Pakistan Bridge Foundation (PBF) told APP.
He said that the PBF was facing scarcity of funds and finding it hard to manage the Wuhan trip. “We need 1.6 million rupees as entry fee for the event for both teams and we are looking for some sponsorships to become able to pay it,” he said adding that the federation would itself manage the rest of the expenditures for the event. According to Javaid during the past three to four years the PBF had received no financial support from Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) and that was why it was suffering from severe financial crunch.
“We can produce top quality players if we are given right kind of support,” he added. Around 800 people will vie for the trophies in the 15-day coveted bridge event. Founded in 1950, the World Bridge Team Championships are the biennial top-level tournament of its kind.
The Championships, held in odd-numbered years, comprise the Bermuda Bowl (open teams), Venice Cup (women’s teams), D’Orsi Senior Bowl (senior teams) and the newly-introduced Mixed National Teams event.—APP
