Dr Minhaj Qidwai elected new KBA President

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Dr Minhaj Qidwai and Khalid Mohiuddin have been elected unopposed as the President and the Secretary respectively of the Karachi Bridge Associates (KBA) for a three-year term starting from 2017.

According to the results declared by the KBA at the Aslam Bridge Hall, housed at the National Stadium, Karachi, all the nine candidates having submitted their nominations were elected unopposed. 

The Founder President of the KBA, Ahsan Rizvi, having relocated abroad, didn�t contest the elections while Azwer-ul-Haque, a veteran bridge player and administrator, was conferred the post of Chairman Emeritus and Rehana Saigol, a former President of the Pakistan Bridge Federation (PBF), has been inducted as an Advisor of the KBA. 

Besides Dr Minhaj Qidwai (President and Director), and Khalid Mohiuddin, (Secretary), Mubashir Puri (Director), Tehseen Ayub (Director), Syed Ameer Hassan (Communication Manager), Mohammad Rafiq (Facility Manager), Shaikh Abdul Muqeet (Business Development Manager), Shahab Khan (Media and Publicity Manager) and Wajahat Suri (Training Manager) are the other elected office-bearers of the KBA for the period 2017-2019. 

�Serving our members, working closely with like-minded organizations and promotion of bridge among youth are our top most priorities. The new KBA management looks forward to work as a team with all the bridge fraternity to promote bridge in Pakistan and make Pakistan shine on the global bridge map,� Dr Minhaj Qidwai remarked. 

�We would like to welcome our member for pairs event every Friday from 6 pm to 9 pm and team event every Sunday from 3 pm to 9 pm at the Aslam Bridge Hall. For playing on Tuesdays the members may have to speak to one of our team members to know the venues holding the event which include Karachi Gymkhana, Karachi Club, Defence Club or Golf Club or elsewhere,� he announced. 

�All who desire to learn bridge are encouraged to contact the KBA management for lessons and training sessions. We are open to suggestions on how to promote bridge particularly among the young Pakistanis to excel in this mind sport,� he added.

More bridge youngsters likely in Hadi Cup 2016

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Greater emphasis will be laid in engaging young players from the educational institutions, besides roping in the stalwarts, in the upcoming fifth edition of the Hadi Cup Bridge Tournament to be staged later this year. 

Instituted by Khurshid Hadi, Chairman, Mind Sports Association of Pakistan (MSAP), and a former President of the Pakistan Bridge Federation (PBF), in the memory of his illustrious father, the tournament is set to be organized by the Karachi Bridge Associates (KBA) in the last quarter of the year. 

Interestingly Khurshid Hadi himself, in the company of his regular partner, Kamal Shoaib, had withstood all the challengers to emerge triumphant in the fourth edition of the Hadi Cup Bridge Pairs Championship 2015 which was held at the Aslam Bridge Hall, housed in the National Stadium, Karachi, last year. 

The two veterans of Pakistan bridge, however, had opted to forego their winning purse and donated it to the KBA, who hosted the two-day event, contested by a total of 28 pairs. The total prize money in the event was Rupees one lac and there were a total of 10 prizes on offer, with four for the winners of each session and the top six position holders in the final points table. 

Many of the leading players of the country, particularly those based in Karachi, which has been the hub of bridge activities for a number of years, had featured in the all the previous editions of the Hadi Cup, having become a regular annual event in the national bridge calendar. 

The KBA as well as the Hadi family have now shown the eagerness to attract greater number of young players, particularly students who have been taking bridge classes at their respective educational institutions, because making occasional presence in the various competitions held from time to time. 

Although the format and dates of the 5th Hadi Cup 2016 have not been finalized yet, the organizers are assessing the possibilities of making the tournament a team event instead of a pairs content, and it will announced well in advance to allow adequate time for registration to facilitate greater participation in it.