The successes in 2010s
Dhaka, 2010
Six female athletes won gold medals in single events in Dhaka. The gold medallists were -- Sharmin Akter Ratna in the 10m air rifle category of shooting, Jaw U Pru in the 55kg kata event of karate, Moreom Khatun in 45kg kumite event of karate, Sharmin Farjana Rumi and Shammi Akhter in 46kg and 49kg taekwondo respectively, and Eti Islam in 52kg wushu.
Two gold medals came from team events. The team of Munni Khanom, U Chinu Marma and Jaw U Pru won gold in kata and the team of Syeda Sadia Sultana, Ratna and Tripti Datta won gold in 10m air rifle.
Shilong-Guwahati, 2016
Among the four gold medals Bangladesh won in Shilong-Guwahati SA Games, three of them were won by female athletes. Mahfuza Khatun Shila won two gold medals in 50m and 100m in swimming’s breaststroke category. This was the first time that a Bangladeshi female athlete won two gold medals in the same competition. Mahfuza also became the first female Bangladeshi swimmer to win gold at the SA Games. Weightlifter Mabia Akter Simanta also achieved a historic feat as she became the first female Bangladeshi athlete to win gold in weightlifting.
Kathmandu-Pokhara, 2019
In 2010, Bangladesh bagged a record 18 gold medals at home. In December last year, a new record was set as they managed to clinch 19 gold medals in Nepal. Six female athletes tasted gold in single events as Bangladesh created history. Mabia once again won gold but this time around, it was in the 76kg category of weightlifting. Fatema Mujib secured gold in the individual sabre in fencing whereas Marzan Akter Priya and Humaira Akhter Antara won gold in the 55kg and 61kg categories respectively in the kumite event of karate. Soma Biswas clinched gold in the single archery compound event while Ety Khatun won gold in the single archery recurve event. In the women’s recurve team event, Ety, Monira Akter and Beauty Roy claimed gold whereas the team consisting of Sushmita Banik, Shyamoli Roy and Soma won gold in the team compound event. Ety and Sushmita also won gold in the mixed recurve and mixed compound events respectively. Ety created history as the 14-year old girl clinched three golds in a single tournament. Apart from these successes, the Bangladesh women’s cricket team, led by Salma Khatun, also won gold.
CRICKET
Almost a year before the men’s team could clinch their first ever international trophy, the women’s team won the T20 Asia Cup in 2018, defeating a strong Indian side in a nail-biting finish in Malaysia.
FOOTBALL
Even though the senior team failed, the age-group teams fared brilliantly in the latter parts of the recently ended decade. The U-15 team clinched the SAFF U-15 Championship on home soil in 2017 before the U-18 team won the SAFF U-18 Women’s Championship in Bhutan the next year.
Bangladesh were the hosts of the U-19 Bangamata International Gold Cup in 2019 and the women’s team reached the final. But due to cyclonic storm, the match was postponed and later Bangladesh and the other finalists, Laos, were declared joint champions. Bangladesh also qualified for the 2017 and 2019 AFC U-16 Women’s Championship. Both tournaments were held in Thailand. In the latest edition the women’s team earned their first point in the history of the tournament when they held mighty Australia to a 2-2 draw.
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