BRAC University crowned champions of Sports Olympiad

BRAC University emerged champion in the inaugural season of the Bangladesh Sports Olympiad, held today at the Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX) campus in Dhaka.

IBA-DU secured the first runner-up position, while IUB finished as the second runner-up, according to a press release.

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The tournament had a total prize pool of Tk 2 lakh. The champion team received Tk 1 lakh, the first runner-up Tk 50,000, and the second runner-up Tk 30,000.

Prof Md Zulhash Uddin, vice-chancellor of BUTEX, presented crests to the winners as the chief guest, according to a press release.

Najmul Hossain Shanto, captain of the Bangladesh national cricket team; Mohammad Ashraful, former captain of the national team; and Sura Krishna Chakma, AFC pro boxing champion, attended the final.

Organised by PowerPlay Communications, the tournament featured the top 11 contestants from various universities across the country.

The organisers said they plan to expand the Bangladesh Sports Olympiad on a larger scale, gradually including school, college and university students to establish a premier nationwide sports knowledge platform.

The campus rounds, which marked the beginning of the Olympiad, drew strong participation from students of leading institutions, including BRAC University, BUET, IUB, IBA-JU, BUTEX, University of Scholars, Canadian University of Bangladesh, BUFT, Southeast University, IBA-DU and DUET.

Following the campus rounds, 151 selected contestants advanced to the semi-final round, from which the top contestant from each of the 11 universities qualified for the final round.

The final five universities were BRAC University, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), International University of Bangladesh (IUB), University of Scholars and IBA-DU.

Comment on the tournament, Palash Sakal, founder and chief organiser of the Bangladesh Sports Olympiad, said, “Sports are an integral part of our society and culture. However, there was a pressing need for a long-term, competitive platform focused on sports knowledge. The Bangladesh Sports Olympiad was born out of that vision.”

“The response we received from students in this first season exceeded our expectations. We believe this initiative will engage even more youth in sports knowledge practices in the future.”

“Our goal is not merely to organise a competition, but to build a robust Sports Knowledge Community in Bangladesh over the long run, a platform bringing together individuals passionate about sports history, statistics, strategy and analytics,” he added.