The Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted the second Diplomatic Indoor Games on 28 August and 29 at International School Dhaka (ISD), bringing together embassies, high commissions, UN agencies and government institutions for two days of badminton and table tennis. The tournament opened this year’s Sports Diplomacy Initiative and continued a tradition of sports diplomacy within Dhaka’s diplomatic community.
Dr Khalilur Rahman, Minister of Foreign Affairs, attended as Chief Guest of the opening ceremony. “Sports has always been the language of trust and understanding among people,” he said. “The games offered a relaxed space for our international partners and host institutions to have open conversations and build relationships outside their usual diplomatic settings.”
Missions and organisations represented included Algeria, Australia, Bangladesh, Denmark, Egypt, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Nepal, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States and the Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh, alongside the United Nations, the World Health Organization, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, UNDP, IOM, IFC and ISD.
Dr Mike Miller, Director of ISD, said in a press release that welcoming the diplomatic community to the campus was a privilege. “This spirit of global dignitaries and institutions coming together for good sportsmanship reflects exactly what we strive for through the IB curriculum; a genuine celebration of diversity and international-mindedness,” he said.
The closing ceremony, at which crests were presented to the winning teams, was attended by Aharar Hossain, Executive Editor of ALAP; Moshiur Rahman, Managing Director of Modhumoti Group; Dr Nazrul Islam, Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who presented the crests; Ziaul Karim, Head of Brand, Marketing and Communications at EBL; Shajalal Sumon, Head of Business Development at Purbani Lifestyle Ltd; and Maria Tanjimath, Advocate at Chamber One.
Beyond the matches, organisers built in time during the opening and closing ceremonies, hospitality areas and intervals between games for delegations to network with host ministries and partner organisations outside the scheduled competition.
The event concluded on August 29 with an awards ceremony across all categories. In badminton, Sohail Borua and Md Morshedul Alam Munna of IOM won the Men’s Doubles, with Manas and Vaisak of ISD as runners-up; Jayson and Sayeda Tasmin Sultana of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs won the Mixed Doubles, with Sapto Sudianto and Nur of Indonesia as runners-up.
In table tennis, Md Ruhul Quddus and Md Mohosin Azad of the WHO won the Doubles, with Newton Rony Das and Md Suja Uddin Bhuiyan, also of the WHO, as runners-up. Ayan Dewan of UNWFP won the Singles title, with Md Ruhul Quddus of the WHO as runner-up.
