Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Thursday inaugurated the second season of the nationwide “Notun Kuri Sports-2026-27” competition, aimed at discovering young sporting talent and encouraging children and adolescents to participate in sports.
The inaugural ceremony was held at Khulna District Stadium, with the prime minister also virtually launching the program simultaneously in 503 upazilas across the country.
Tarique Rahman entered the stadium around 3:45pm when State Minister for Youth and Sports Md Aminul Haque and acting Secretary Mahfuzul Alam Khan welcomed him.
As the prime minister arrived, students and young athletes in the galleries greeted him by waving at him. He reciprocated their greetings by walking across the field towards the galleries and waving back at the young spectators.
He then inaugurated the competition by releasing balloons and hoisting the national flag.
The prime minister also interacted with some young athletes participating in the competition's 10 disciplines.
Traditional Chinese dragon and lion dances performed by a group of students from China added a cultural touch to the opening ceremony of Notun Kuri Sports (Season 2) in Khulna.
The students from Yunnan Minzu University in Kunming, Yunnan Province, China, performed the dances in the presence of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman at Khulna District Stadium. The performance was part of sports and cultural diplomacy between Bangladesh and China.
A total of 1,623,218 participants have registered online for the second season of the competition, according to information presented at the event.
The competition is being organized under the theme, “Make sports a profession, give families confidence”, with the aim of identifying sporting talent among children and adolescents across the country and creating opportunities for their development from the grassroots level.
The Department of Sports is implementing the initiative under the supervision of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, in line with a commitment in the BNP's election manifesto.
Inspired by the popular “Notun Kuri” talent-hunting program of the 1980s, the initiative seeks to revive the spirit of that program through the discovery of young talent in sports.
In the second season, volleyball and table tennis have been added to the previous eight disciplines, taking the total to 10. Children aged between 10 and 14 are eligible to participate.
The first season of “Notun Kuri Sports” was inaugurated in Sylhet on May 2 last to help children and adolescents develop their latent talents, foster interest in sports, and encourage greater participation in sporting activities.
