Ismail and Shirin become the fastest man-woman in 100m sprint

The absence of Imranur Rahman, the fastest man in the last four editions, raised the question of who would fill his shoes in this year's National Athletics Championship. Mohammad Ismail of the Bangladesh Navy stepped up to fill that gap and was crowned the fastest man.

The 48th National Athletics Championship kicked off today at Dhaka's National Stadium. Both the men's and women's 100-metre sprint events took place, with Ismail securing first place in the men's 100-metre sprint. He clocked a time of 10.61 seconds on the electronic board.

This marks Ismail's fifth win in the men's 100 metres. After becoming the fastest man for the first time since 2021, Ismail said that his victory was the result of continuous effort: "I trained for seven months to become the fastest man in this competition. It wasn't easy; I had to work very hard. However, the Navy has supported me a lot."

In the women's competition, Shirin Akter retained her title of the fastest woman by defeating Sumaiya Dewan. This is Shirin's 16th national title in the 100-metre event. The Navy athlete completed the race in 12.01 seconds, while Sumaiya finished second with a time of 12.15 seconds.

Shirin, thrilled with her 16th victory, shared that this achievement wasn't easily earned: "I'm happy to be the fastest woman again. It wasn't easy, though. The athletes who competed alongside me are also excellent sprinters. My coach Abdullah Hel Kafi Sir has always been supportive."

However, despite her regular victories on home soil, Shirin still has one unfulfilled dream: winning a gold medal at the South Asian Games wearing the red-and-green jersey. As she mentioned to the media today: "I don't have any regrets. But I would love to gift the country a gold medal at the SA Games."