As part of the process to keep the youth fit, active and motivated, The Aga Khan Youth and Sports Board for Pakistan organised a Sports Fellowship basketball coaching programme in Gilgit and Karachi.

In collaboration with AKYSB for USA, professional coaches and elite athletes from the USA were invited to help train participants who were interested to learn the sport of basketball. The aim was to provide our participants with professional coaching and consultation with respect to the tactics and strategies required to excel.

With 108 participants from Gilgit and Karachi, including 50 young women, the basketball camp catered to an age group from 8 to 25 years. This camp aimed to introduce and fine-tune these young people's athletic skills while promoting a healthy lifestyle and inculcating comradery and life skills with leadership training sessions. Amongst the list of coaches were players like Asad Meghani and Danish Pradhan, gold medalists at the Golden Jubilee Games in Dubai. Pradhan, the USA team’s coach, has more than 10 years of experience in the field of basketball coaching. Other elite players, such as Anil Hemani and Zain Motani, gave local athetes the benefit of their immense expertise to help the participants’ progression over the duration of the camp.

The Sports Fellowship basketball coaching programme concluded with a closing ceremony at the Aga Khan University Sports and Rehabilitation Centre in Karachi, which was attended by participants, elite athletes, leaders from YSB USA and Pakistan and Hafiz Sherali, President, Ismaili Council for Pakistan. The partnership between YSB Pakistan and YSB USA sparked an interest in our youth in the sport of basketball and was also an opportunity to appreciate the cultural diversity of our Jamat. Furthermore, with the next Jubilee Games on the horizon, competitive teams have been identified for both the mens and womens competitions.