Athletes who participated in the Punjab Rising Games have returned their medals to the office of caretaker Sports Minister Punjab Wahab Riaz as a protest. The players returned their medals to expose the “false promises” of cash prizes by the Punjab Sports Board and Wahab Riaz.

All the national and international players participating in the tournament won medals by competing with heart and soul and they deserve better treatment. When the players tried to meet former cricketer and caretaker sports minister Wahab Riaz, his office was locked.

From promise to disappointment: Victorious athletes show the reality of @WahabViki and @Sports_BoardPB #Badminton | #Pakistan | #WahabRiaz | #PunjabSportsBoard | #Lahore | #Athletes pic.twitter.com/9kjTAh4gyw

— Khel Shel (@khelshel) January 28, 2024

Riaz had earlier announced that the mega event will continue for 16 days and will include sports like volleyball, hockey, football, badminton, athletics, and table tennis.

The ongoing Punjab Rising Games started on January 18 and the final of the games will be held on February 2.

Wahab Riaz had announced before the tournament that the top performers in the mega event would be given a monthly stipend of Rs 70,000, Rs 50,000 and Rs 30,000 for a year based on their performance. The former cricketer also announced that a prize money of Rs 25 lakh will be given for each game during the mega event, but all these promises and announcements have not been fulfilled yet. A total of 950 players from all divisions of Punjab have registered for the event.