Wasim an Imran back new Sport for Life centre (From Asian Image)

Wasim an Imran back new Sport for Life centre

7:50pm Thursday 11th March 2010 in

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The the first of a national network of learning and sporting centres across Pakistan has opened.

The President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Raja Zulqarnain Khan joined children at the Mirpur Cricket Stadium to launch the project.

It is run by UK based not-for-profit organisation Sport for Life! and supported by a group of senior sporting Ambassadors, including some of Pakistan’s greatest cricketing role models, Wasim Akram and Imran Khan, the new state of the art learning centre will inspire and motivate young people, through a love of cricket, to achieve greater academic success.

The Sport for Life! Centre at Mirpur is the first in a national roll out for Pakistan.

Sport for Life! gives us the opportunity to expand that role and help children who could be making more of their lives

Wasim Akram

It will provide up to 200 children a week with sports coaching alongside specially developed curriculum material in key subjects such as English language, maths and science. As well as providing exciting new education facilities the centres will give young people, who may otherwise be vulnerable to negative influences, a set of positive role models.

In a year when the Pakistani cricket team have been forced to hold its national tour abroad, by working with the Pakistan Cricket Board this project will also ensure that the stars of the future will have a rounded education as well as an improvement in their bowling and batting.

It is a timely reminder that cricket in Pakistan unites the nation and that young people here have a positive future ahead of them.

President Zulqarnain said: “I am delighted to be able to open the Sport for Life! centre. I believe that every child in Pakistan deserves the best possible education.

"By combining cricket and the chance to study using the latest IT equipment, Sport for Life! will give all the pupils who take part the chance to really develop their sporting and academic skills.

This in turn will help them develop to their full potential and make a success of their lives.”

Wasim Akram said: “Cricket plays a key role in Pakistan society. Sport for Life! gives us the opportunity to expand that role and help many children in the country who could be making more of their lives.

"Mirpur is a tremendous facility and Sport for Life! will ensure that it fulfils its purpose as a centre for community activity as well host to world class cricket matches.”

Lord Richard Newby, UK Director of Sport for Life! Inc said: “Sport for Life! has the potential to fundamentally change the lives of many children both in Kashmir and across Pakistan generally. We are immensely grateful to our sponsors for getting us to this point and will now be looking for additional resources both internationally and domestically, to enable the project to develop and expand.”