In a historic first, four national women athletes from Bangladesh will accompany Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on his upcoming four-day state visit to Qatar, scheduled to begin on Monday.

The delegation includes footballers Afida Khandakar and Shaheda Akhter Ripa, and cricketers Sumaiya Akhter and Sharmin Sultana, the press wing of the Chief Adviser confirmed on Thursday.

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This is the first time a group of female athletes will travel as part of an official state delegation with a head of government of Bangladesh. 

The Qatar Foundation extended the invitation to the athletes through the Office of the Chief Adviser.

On Thursday evening, the four athletes met with Professor Yunus at the state guesthouse Jamuna, where they discussed their goals for the visit and expressed their excitement.

“We are thrilled to be part of this visit. It’s not just a personal honour but also a proud moment for our teammates and the sports community in Bangladesh,” the footballers were quoted as saying in a press release of the press wing. 

They added that they hoped to invite the Qatari women’s football team for a friendly match and were eager to explore Qatar’s sports facilities and professional training methods.

The cricketers said their desire to spark interest in cricket in Qatar, where the sport is not yet widely followed.

“We’ve prepared a presentation to introduce both our men’s and women’s cricket journeys,” they said. 

During the meeting, the athletes also shared their personal struggles and thanked the Chief Adviser for giving them the opportunity to represent the country abroad.

Professor Yunus praised the athletes for their resilience and passion.

“You are Bangladesh’s sports ambassadors. Share your real stories. Represent our country’s spirit and progress through sports,” he said.

He assured full support from his office to ensure the success of their trip.

The chief adviser is expected to attend the Earthna Summit and hold several high-level meetings during his visit from April 21 to 24, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.