Internet Desk: Nobel Peace Laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus will bear the torch of the Rio Olympic Games which is starting in the Brazilian city on August 5.
He is chosen by Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), to join the mission of spreading the spirit of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games throughout the world.
The Rio Olympic Torch relay began with the traditional Olympic flame lighting ceremony in the Greek city of Olympia, birthplace of the ancient Games, on April 21, 2016.
In Brazil, the Rio 2016 Olympic Torch Relay started in the Brazilian capital Brasília on May 3. After travelling more than three hundred cities throughout the country, the torch relay will end on August 5 during the opening ceremony at the Maracanã Stadium.
Prof Yunus will bear the Olympic torch at the final leg of the relay in Rio on August 4, 2016, said Yunus Centre in Dhaka in a statement yesterday.
The founder of Grameen Bank will also address the IOC, attended by representatives of the national Olympic committees from around the world, in Rio on the same day. He will speak on “Athletics, Social Business and SDGs – the New Vision of the World”.
Prof Yunus will be jointly working with the IOC to develop a social dimension to the athletics and the sports world, right from the grassroot level to the global level. This will include all IOC events, venues and organisations to participate and create social businesses to address human problems around them, said the statement.
The Rio Olympic is the 31 edition of the modern day Olympic Games, where 39 different sports will be played.
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