PESHAWAR (Pakistan) - A SUICIDE bomber blew himself up at a packed sports stadium in northwestern Peshawar city on Tuesday, killing two people and wounding five others, police said.

Nobody immediately claimed responsibility for the blast, but several other attacks in past months have been blamed on pro-Taleban militants with links to Al-Qaeda.

The bombing took place at the closing ceremony of a sports event attended by senior government officials including the provincial governor, police said.

'We have received two dead bodies and five injured people,' police official, Khan Abbas, said at Peshawar's main Lady Readings Hospital.

Peshawar is the capital of North West Frontier Province, which borders Afghanistan.

'The bomber was stopped by the police and when he failed to enter the stadium he blew himself up at the gate,' provincial police chief Malik Naveed told reporters.

'We had some intelligence and took precautionary measures, that's why he could not enter the stadium,' he said.

He said it was difficult to say who was behind the bombing, but that it 'could be linked to the unrest in the tribal areas' bordering Afghanistan. The military is hunting Al-Qaeda linked militants in the area.

The attack took place after a ceremony marking the end of the week-long national games, local administration chief Sahabzada Anis told reporters .

Up to 30,000 people including hundreds of sportsmen from across the country had taken part in the games, he said.

Most of the spectators had left but several ministers and senior officials were on their way out of the venue when the bomber blew himself up.

'Provincial Governor Owais Ghani had left the stadium moments ago,' police officer Pervez Khan said, adding that at least six vehicles parked outside the gate were also damaged. -- AFP