Prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday asked the country’s education authorities and others concerned to stage sport events and competitions at grassroots to explore talents and infuse sportsmanship into youths.

‘Arrange all types of inter-school, inter-college, inter-university, inter-district and inter-upazila sports competitions to create scopes for the local talents to come up,’ she said while opening virtually the final round of the 52nd Winter National Sports Competition- 2024 from her official Ganobhaban residence.

Sheikh Hasina said her government was constructing mini stadiums at every upazila to facilitate sports nationwide to engage children in sport activities round the year to flourish their talents.

Rajshahi Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board organised the competition at Rajshahi town for the students of schools, madrassahs and technical educational institutions.

‘Our children will be more progressive minded and will have good health if they get them involved in physical exercises and cultural practices alongside sports,’ the prime minister said.

She stressed the need for enhancing efficiency of the local children in sports, including football, cricket, volleyball, basketball, baseball, weight-lifting, tennis, and long tennis.

She also asked all concerned to put emphasis on reintroducing the local sports such as hadudu and dangguli alongside others, saying, ‘We should reintroduce our local sports to our children.’

The prime minister said that Bangladeshi children are highly skilled in sports and they are now showing their talents on global stage.

‘Our children are very good and meritorious. If we can create more scope for them, they will show their talents at local and global level,’ she added.

The head of the government opined that if they could arrange proper training for the Bangladeshi children, they would definitely show their efficiency in sports.

Bearing it in mind, she said her government had been attaching priority to proper training.

She said that they were building Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protishtan at each eight divisions to facilitate training.

‘We have built BKSP in several divisions to provide proper training while the rest will be constructed gradually,’ she said.

The prime minister said that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had taken measures to develop the country’s sports and introduced winter sports competition soon after the independence.

She said that she had a sports-loving family, as her family members were involved in sports

She also said that her father Sheikh Mujib and grandfather were footballers, while her three brothers — Sheikh Kamal, Sheikh Jamal and Sheikh Russel and wives of Kamal and Jamal were involved in sports and their grandchildren were also involved in sports.

The prime minister said that her government had already made Bangladesh digital as per their electoral pledge of 2008.

She said they are now pursuing to build Smart Bangladesh by 2041 in accordance with the election manifesto of 2024.

Describing the children and youths as the soldier of building Smart Bangladesh, the PM said that they would take the country forward in every sector including sports in the days to come.

The PM also congratulated the Bangladesh U-19 women football team on its victory against Bhutan with 4-0 goal in their final league stage match of the ongoing SAFF Under-19 Women’s Championship, saying, ‘The Bangladesh women will go forward this way’.

Education minister Mohibul Hassan Chowdhoury and Rajshahi City mayor Abul Hasnat Muhammad Khairuzzaman Liton, also spoke on the occasion at Rajshahi end.