State Of Women Sports (10)
Sky is the limit for fledging women boxers
In a male-dominated society like Bangladesh women face struggles in every walk of life, and sports is no exception. Religious barriers and a lack of support from family have forced women to take a backseat for years in the sporting field. Yet they have still found some outstanding successes in some games, which can be an inspiration for thousand others. In this daily series, New Age will look into the challenges and prospects of women in different sports.
When it comes to boxing, one would hardly imagine a girl competing. A highly physical game, boxing is usually reserved for men, even internationally. Despite being one of the demonstration sports in the 1908 London Olympics, women’s boxing was only accepted as an Olympic sport more than 100 years later.
The International Olympic Committee decided in 2009 to include three women’s boxing events for the London 2012 Olympics, a decision that triggered a worldwide boost for women’s boxing and the air seemed to have touched Bangladesh as well.
Inspired by the Olympic addition, Bangladesh introduced women’s boxing in 2010 through a talent hunt programme undertaken by the National Sports Council. The NSC included women’s boxing among the 18 disciplines for a nationwide programme and managed to find some young girls very interested in the game.
About 20 girls, mostly from the Jessore and Rajshahi regions, joined a short training course in Dhaka in 2010 to mark the beginning of women’s boxing in Bangladesh.
-With New Age input
