Bhaktapur: The Third National Tug-of-War Championship is set to take place on February 28 and 29, as announced by the Nepal Tug-of-War Association, which is organizing the national competition.
According to National News Agency Nepal, players from all seven provinces are expected to participate in the Championship, which will be held at SOS Hermann Gmeiner Secondary School, Sanothimi, Bhaktapur. Association president Bhawani Poudel confirmed that 10 teams, including seven provincial teams and three departmental teams from the security bodies, will compete in the men’s category. Meanwhile, eight teams, comprising five provincial teams and three departmental teams, will compete in the women’s category. However, Sudurpaschim Province and Karnali Province are not sending their women’s teams.
A total of 162 players from 18 teams will participate in the competition. The winning team in the male category stands to win Rs 100 thousand, while the first runner-up will receive Rs 50 thousand. In the women’s category, the winner will receive Rs 60 thousand, and the first runner-up will get Rs 40 thousand, as stated by the Association’s International Representative, Ananda Kumar Yadav.
Yadav emphasized that the national level tug-of-war competition has been organized to promote and preserve this traditional sport, which has long been neglected despite being one of Nepal’s oldest and indigenous games. The Association estimates that the Championship will cost Rs 3.1 million.