Sport activity pursued for
exercise or pleasure, performed individually or in a group, often
involving the testing of physical capabilities and usually taking
the form of a competitive game. The game traditionally played in a
country over a long period of time usually becomes the national
game of that country through a general consensus of its citizens.
The national game in the USA is baseball, in Mexico and Spain it is
bullfighting, in England cricket, and and in
Bangladesh kabadi. Sports are now incorporated in
the curricula of most general educational establishments. Sports
competitions are organised for encouraging physical development of
the sporting communities and establishment of the supremacy of
individuals, groups/teams or nations in different sports. These
competitions are good means of entertainment and they also
contribute effectively to raising funds.
Sports organisation in Bangladesh has undergone
many changes in different periods before and after its
independence. The Bangladesh Sports Control Board was established
in 1972. There are 29 registered federations under this board.
These include federations for popular games such
as football,
cricket, hockey, tennis, badminton, volleyball, handball, chess,
and caromas well as for wrestling,
weightlifting, squash, billiard, and snooker, which are less
popular in Bangladesh. Other recognised sports organisations in the
country are the district and divisional sports organisations,
university sports organisations, and the sports bodies of the armed
forces, police and ansar, as well as of public sector
corporations, boards and departments such as Bangladesh Biman,
BJMC, BTMC, PWD, and Bangladesh Railway.
Sport clubs have a significant contribution to the
development of sports in the country. Prominent among the clubs of
Bangladesh are Abahani Krirachakra, Arambag, Ajax, Azad Sporting,
Brothers Union, Dhaka Mohammedan Sporting, Dhaka Wanderers,
Dilkusha Sporting, GMCC, Kalabagan, Muktijoddha Sangsad,
Rahmatganj, Suryatarun, Victoria Sporting, and Wari. Some of these
clubs are reputed for their glorious past while others earned a
name by excellent performance at national level at
present.
Abahani
Krirachakrawas established
at dhakain 1972 through reorganisation of
Iqbal Sporting Club. Within a short time, the club gained fame
through commendable performances in hockey, cricket and football
tournaments. In fact, it was a trendsetter in sports in the
country. It introduced junior coaching camps on its own initiative
and employed foreign trainers in them. Abahani also did a lot to
improve football in Bangladesh through new
experiments.
In the 20 years between 1973 and 1993, Abahani played
16 times in the finals of the national football league. It finished
as champion eight times (1974, 1977, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1989,
1990) and as runner up on as many occasions (1973, 1976, 1979,
1982, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1993). The club was champion in the
Federation Cup Football in 1982, 1985, 1986 and 1989 and runner up
in 1981, 1983, 1990 and 1993. In the Asia Cup Club Tournament held
in 1985 in Sri Lanka, Abahani was the runner up and it was Champion
in the Nagji Trophy Football Tournament held in India in
1990.
Between 1973 and 1993, Abahani became the champion of
Dhaka's first division cricket league eleven times and runner up on
five occasions. In the Damal Summer Cricket Tournament, Abahani
became champion in 1980-81 and 1984-85 and runner up in 1982-83 and
1985-86. The club was champion in the Shaheed Smriti Cricket
Tournament in 1977-78, 1981-82 and 1984-85 and in the Star Summer
Cricket Tournament in 1980-81 and 1984-85. It finished the Alpha
Cup Cricket as champion in 1982-83 and as runner up in
1983-84.
The club became champion in the first division hockey
league in 1977, 1978, 1980-81, 1982-83, 1985-86, 1988-89 and
1993-94, and was runner up in 1977-78, 1979-80, 1981-82 and
1987-88. The club was champion in the Shaheed Smriti Hockey
Tournament in 1973 and 1974 and runner up in 1976, 1977 and 1979.
It was champion in the Independence Cup Hockey Tournament in 1974,
1975, 1977 and 1979 and runner up in 1973 and 1985.
Abahani Club was made a limited company in
1989.
Arambag
Clubwas established in Dhaka in 1958. It was at first a
football club but later became active in other games like handball,
basketball and volleyball. The club has had continued success in
different tournaments. It became champion in the 4th and 5th Shital
Women's Handball competitions. In 1980, it was champion in the
Alpha Cup Football Tournament of Nepal and in 1995, runner up in
the eighth Chief Minister Gold Cup Football Tournament of Sikkim
and in the Nagji Gold Cup Tournament of India. In 1997, the club
took part in a football tournament at Agartala that marked the
golden jubilee of the independence of India. In the same year it
became runner up at home in the Federation Cup Football
Tournament.
Azad Sporting
Clubwas founded at Dhaka in 1949. Main patrons of the club
were the writers, poets, painters, actors, and publishers. Its
football team was promoted from the second division league to the
first division in 1951 and in 1958, it became champion of Dhaka's
first division football league. Azad Sporting is not a prominent
club now in terms of its performance in different championships but
it is given special credit because of its role as a school of
training up young sportsmen. The club prepares not only football
players but also athletes, cyclists and the players of basketball,
volleyball, hockey, cricket, and badminton.
Brothers Union
Clubwas established at Gopibag, Dhaka in 1949. The club,
however, remained little known until 1973, when it first appeared
in the third division football league and became its champion of
that league. Next year it played in the second division football
league and as the champion of the season, it was promoted to the
first division. Ever since the club has had continued success and
in course of time, it became the third most powerful football club
of the country next to Abahani and Mohammedan. Brothers Union also
performs well in cricket, chess and handball.
Mohammedan Sporting
Clubwas established
in calcuttatowards the end of the eighteenth
century (1896, according to some sources) at the initiative of a
group of businessmen and political leaders as their own sports
club. In 1934, Calcutta Mohammedan became champion in the second
division football league and was promoted to the first division.
Dhaka Mohammedan Sporting Club was formed in 1933. According to
some people, however, the year of establishment of Dhaka Mohammedan
is 1938. Although apparently, Dhaka Mohammedan was a branch of the
Calcutta Mohammedan, the former was a club created through
reorganisation of the Muslim Sporting Club formed at Hazaribag,
Dhaka in 1927.
After the Partition of Bengal in 1947, a vacuum was
created in the sports arena of Dhaka. At that time, Mohammad
Shahjahan, a famous football player of Calcutta Mohammedan came to
Dhaka and took charge of the Dhaka Mohammedan. He reorganised it
and also developed its football team as a very strong one. The
achievements of the team, however, were not significant until 1955.
Dhaka's football was dominated at the time by Dhaka Wanderers'
Club. Some star players and an official of the Wanderers had joined
Dhaka Mohammedan in 1956. Later, the players themselves took
initiatives of organising the team for increasingly better
performance. In 1961, Dhaka Mohammedan played in the final match of
the first division football league and in the next year, it became
its champion. The club became champion also in the Independence Day
Football Tournament of that year.
Later, Dhaka Mohammedan Club extended their
participation in other games and sports including hockey, swimming,
athletics, volleyball, table tennis and badminton. The club
clinched the football league championship title 15 times between
1957 and 1999 and during the same period, it was runners up 12
times. It was champion in the Dhaka Metropolitan Football League
(in 1993) and in the Independence Cup Football Tournament (5 times,
between 1957 and 1966). The club is five times champion in the
Federation Cup Football. It became champion in the Ashis-Jabbar
Shield Tournament held in Durgapur of West Bengal in 1982. In the
international football tournaments held in Dhaka, it was champion
in 1959, 1964 and 1968 and runner up in 1966, 1967 and
1976.
The club's performance in cricket is marked by its
becoming champion 6 times in Dhaka Cricket League and three times
in Damal Summer Cricket League. It was champion in the national
volleyball tournaments in three consecutive years between 1967 and
1969. Kamrunnahar Dana of Dhaka Mohammedan Club won the triple
crown in Sputnik Badminton in 1981 and also in Biman Badminton in
1982, 1983, 1984 and 1985. The Mohammedan team was champion in
national badminton tournaments in 1982, 1983 and
1985.
Victoria Sporting
ClubNamed after Queen Victoria, the
club was established by a group of zamindars of the Tejgaon and Kurmitola
areas of Dhaka in 1903. Initially, it was a football club but
later, it started taking part in hockey and cricket in the 1930s.
The club became champion in Dhaka's first division football league
championship in 1948. In 1960 and 1961, it finished the same as
runner up but in 1962, it clinched the championship title in four
major football tournaments of Dhaka, including the first division
league. That year, it played with South Korea in the final match of
the Aga Khan Gold Cup Tournament and defeated her by five goals to
one. The club however, failed to sustain its reputation of a grade
one football team. It is now known as a medium class team in
Dhaka's first division football league. But it performs well in
games like badminton, boxing, wrestling and weight
lifting.
Wari Clubwas established in
1898 by a number of enthusiastic sports organisers under the
leadership of Roybahadur Surendranath Roy of the Wari area of
Dhaka. The club, however, took a regular shape only in the 1920s,
when it acquired a playground in the Paltan area of the city and
also constructed an office near it. Wari is a special club known
for its glorious achievements in football at different times. It
became widely known in 1910, when it defeated the Royal Palace
Football Team in a charity match. In a friendly match in 1917, Wari
defeated Lincolin Club, which was the first division football
league champion. In 1937, Eilington Corinthian, a famous European
football team of that time toured India and the local team with 10
players of Wari stopped its rally of remaining unbeaten in a row.
Even today, Wari is always considered a threat to big football
teams, who often lose matches in encounters with it. Wari has a
good record in other games also. It became champion in three
consecutive years in the Dhaka cricket league (1951-1953) and in
the Dhaka volleyball league (1972-1974).
Source: www.Banglapedia.org
