Girls reaching to new heights to prove they are nothing less than a man

The beautiful valley of Shimshal is one of the most beautiful valleys of Pakistan and home to a lot of brave girls who seem to have a love for football.

Approximately 29 young women and girls from this valley trekked on a dangerous trail for four hours just to play the highest altitude game of football at the Zarthgurben grounds, reported by Gulf news.

The locals tell that Zarthgurben is located at 4,100 meters above the sea level and is the ‘world’s highest sports ground’.

The mountain girls were aged between 11 to 22 did not let any obstacle come in their way, whether it was harsh weather, the dangerous track or the breathing problems, just to prove to the world that they are no less.

Sajna Mirza, 21 years old told the Emirati Publications, “the best part was reaching to the ground with the girls and I believe we have certainly made a national record by climbing the mountain to play sports at a record-breaking height”.

Shishmal is home to many of the brave women of Pakistan like Samina Baig, the first woman mountaineer of Pakistan.

It is a region of Hunza that is connected to China and the last village that borders with China.

The game was very small but it was an important effort by the girls showing that women can go to any heights and in any field, says Mirza, who plays as a striker.

She says, “The football match demonstrates the motivation and the devotion od village girls who are working hard to prove their power on the community level as well as football level.”

The match was organized by Al Shams Women Football Club, a football club founded by the fans of football from the valley, Munawar Ali and his cousin Azeem Baqir.

19 years old Baqir described the game saying, “The performance of the girls in the whole event was a huge success, in fact beyond our expectations”.

“The aim behind this women match was to spread the message of equality and peace from the remotest valley of Pakistan’s Mountain region”.

 “Our goal is to encourage girls from these areas to fulfill their dreams and to offer them the right training and equal opportunity”.

Baqir and Ali were always working for this project then Baqir’s sister Karishma joined the club too. And since then all three of them have been working passionately to create opportunities for the girls of these areas.

Baqir explained when asked about the reaction of the local people, said: “The locals were a little hesitant before and thought that sports will waste the time of their children but soon they realized the benefits like sports scholarship”.

They say that they are providing all the necessities to the young girls but still feel challenged in collecting funds for their organization.

They said, “The valley is full of talent and our main goal is to empower women, create sports opportunities for girls of Gilgit Baltistan and promoting the talent of our region.”