The Arafat Rahman Koko Memorial Trust Foundation has for the first time recognized athletes for their special contributions to sports. A total of nine current and former athletes received the 'Arafat Rahman Koko Memorial Award' at a ceremony held at the Le Méridien Hotel in Dhaka. State Minister for Youth and Sports Aminul Haque attended as chief guest and presented each awardee with a crest and a cash prize of 100,000 taka.

The foundation, established in memory of the late Arafat Rahman Koko, introduced this award to honor achievements across different sports disciplines. Among the recipients were former national cricket captain Habibul Bashar Sumon, women’s cricketer Marufa Akter, former footballer Alfaz Ahmed, and national women’s footballer Rituparna Chakma. Organizers expressed hope that the award would become one of the country’s most prestigious sports honors.

Award recipients expressed joy at receiving the recognition, saying it would inspire them to perform even better in the future. The state minister noted plans to expand the award to an international level in coming years to further promote a sports-friendly environment in Bangladesh.