Nat'l athletics from today

The AKM Shamsuzzoha Smiriti 39th National Athletics competition starts today at the Bangabandhu National Stadium(BNS).

The three-day competition, which will be the focus of the whole athletics fraternity in the country due to the upcoming South Asian Games, will see its showpiece event -- the 100m sprint for men and women -- held on Friday afternoon.

The current fastest male sprinter Mezbahuddin Ahmed of Bangladesh Navy and fastest female sprinter Shirin Sultana will be among the contenders for the crown of the showpiece event.

State Minister for LGRD and Co-operatives, Moshiur Rahman Ranga MP, will inaugurate the three-day meet named after Independence Award winner and former MP AKM Shamsuzzoha.

The organisers are expecting around 600 athletes from across the country to participate in the premier athletics completion of the country. The male athletes of the competition will be accommodated at different city hotels while the female athletes will reside at the Sultana Kamal Women's Sports Complex in Dhanmondi, said Ibrahim Chengis, the general secretary of Bangladesh Athletics Federation (BAF), at a press conference at the BNS yesterday.

Representatives of the meet's sponsor handed over a cheque of Tk 8 lakh to the officials of BAF. The athletes, who will set new national records in the meet, will be awarded a cash prize of Tk 5,000 each, it was informed during the press conference.