The Second Adventure Marathon Race, which was started from Pir Sohawa-Islamabad …

The Second Adventure Marathon Race, which was started from Pir Sohawa-Islamabad culminated at Khanpur Lake in Haripur district on Monday.
The Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (TCKP) and the Adventure Edge Club had jointly organized the marathon race with an aim to provide the youth an opportunity of adventure tourism and engage them in healthy activities.
Deputy Secretary Sports, Tourism, Archaeology, Museums, Culture and Youth Affairs Department, Tauseef Khalid, was chief guest at the concluding ceremony.
Besides a large number of tourists and visitors, Haripur Assistant Commissioner Shabbir Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer Adventure Edge Club Khalid Khalil and officials of the TCKP were present on the occasion.
All 12 teams, each comprising of five members each, participated in the race. Sixty youth, both male and female, covered a total of 23 kilometers distance from Pir Sohawa to Khanpur Lake during the race. The racers passed through Tilhar, Tonia and Pomala villages, Kerwali Top and Najabpur area and reached the scenic Khanpur Lake after 13 kilometer trekking, nine kilometer cycling and one kilometer rafting.
Sonam Kamal, Muhammad Hafiz, Daud Ahmed, Farhan Ayub and Wasif of ‘Group C’ clinched first position while Sajid Aslam, Muhammad Qsim Niaz, Muhammad Baqir, Umair Aslam, and Syed Mudassir of ‘Group J’ stood second.
Hafiz Mansoor, Romal, Ayazuddin, Naveed and Sabrina Baig of ‘Group B’ grabbed third position in the race.
Speaking on the occasion, Deputy Secretary Tauseef Khalid said that Tourism Department had taken a number steps for the promotion of adventure and archaeological tourism in the province.
He said several projects were undergoing for the beautification of scenic resorts to attract more foreign and domestic tourists to the serene places in KP.
Under the Area Integrated Development Unit project, the official added that work was going on the beautification and renovation of tourist spots in Kalam and Naran valleys and bazars.
Later, the chief guest distributed cash prizes of Rs20,000, Rs 15,000 and Rs10,000 to the first, second and third position holders, respectively.