GP delight for disabled
Sports Reporter
Grameenphone came forward to stand beside the disabled athletes of the country when the cellular phone operators signed an agreement with Special Olympics Bangladesh at a local hotel yesterday.Grameenphone will sponsor the Bangladesh team in next year's Special Olympic Games to be held in Shanghai, China from October 2 to 11 apart from continuing financial support till 2011 under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme. It will not only bear all expenses of the tours but also as an extension of its support, Grameenphone plans to assist in developing the capacity of Special Olympics as well as its athletes by organising regional and national competitions to search for new talents and train them for the future. Bangladesh have been participating in the Special Olympics Summer Games since 1995 and they have bagged 37 gold, 22 silver and 19 bronze medals from the last three meets. This time, a total of 49 athletes will represent Bangladesh in seven events -- football, badminton, athletics, swimming, table tennis, cricket and bochi. "We want to create a friendlier and enabling environment for those individuals who need our support and encouragement to succeed by empowering them and building their confidence in their own capability," said Erik Aas, managing director of Grameenphone. Chairman of Special Olympics Bangladesh Ashraf-ud-Dowla also spoke on the occasion.
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