• National hockey player Shahid Raza died in the migrant boat
• Raza was on board a boat from Turkey to Italy
• She was a national hockey and football player

KARACHI: A female national hockey player was among the victims who died in after a migrant boat capsized off the coast of Italy.

According to reports, hockey player Shahida Raza, who hails from the Hazara community in Quetta, was on board the ill-fated boat that crashed in the rocks off the coast on Italy.

The 27-year-old athlete and sportswoman sailed on migrant boat from Turkey to Italy which crashed into a sea cliff in the Crotone region of Italy, causing more than 200 migrants to drown, including around 40 Pakistanis. She decided to go to Europe after her divorce with dreams of a better future when tragedy struck.

Shahida Raza represented Pakistan at the international level in hockey and football. She was also a four-time football player of the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF). Raza was the mother of an infant girl but her daughter was not present with her.

In an interview with Bol News, Balochistan Hockey Association (BHA) Secretary Syed Amin confirmed that Shahida Raza was on the migrant boat that crashed in Italy.

He said that Shahida Raza’s relatives have decided not shared the news of her death with her mother. He expressed sorrow that Shahida Raza, fondly known as Chintu in sporting circles, died in a boat accident on the way to Italy.

Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) has confirmed the death of the national hockey player Shahida Raza in the Italy migrant boat incident.

Pakistan Hockey Federation President Brigadier (retd) Khalid Khokhar, Secretary General Syed Haider Hussain, PHF Women Wing Syeda Shehla Raza, Tanzila Amir Cheema expressed their grief over Raza’s tragic death.

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