Bangladesh Army swimmer Faisal Ahmed who had won the men's title at the 21st National Long-Distance Swimming Championship 2025 declared a far bigger ambition to conquer the English Channel, the world's most historic open-water challenge, in future.
The championship, organised by the Bangladesh Swimming Federation and facilitated by the Bangladesh Navy, was held on the Shitalakshya and Dhaleshwari rivers on Friday, featuring 35 selected swimmers from the armed forces and various organisations.
Faisal completed the 10-kilometre men's race in 1 hour 28 minutes 42 seconds, finishing ahead of Navy swimmer Palash Chowdhury and fellow Army swimmer Nurul Islam. In the women's 7-kilometre event, Bangladesh Navy's Sonia Akter Tumpa secured first place with a time of 1 hour 7 minutes 23 seconds.
Speaking after his victory, Faisal said the win was a "proud moment", but not the end of his journey.
"This race is not just about medals it is about honouring the river culture our nation grew from," he said.
He added, "I am delighted to finish first, but I am now preparing for a much harder test. My dream is to swim across the English Channel."
The English Channel, a 34-kilometre stretch of open sea between Dover and Calais, is regarded as the "Everest of open-water swimming". If successful, Faisal would become one of the few Bangladeshis in history to achieve the feat.
Women's champion Sonia Akter Tumpa also expressed hopes of competing internationally, saying she wishes to "carry the national flag into global waters".
The medal ceremony was held at the Munshiganj launch terminal, where Chief of Naval Staff and Federation President Admiral M Nazmul Hassan presented trophies and assured future investment in long-distance training, including plans for a permanent swimming facility in Munshiganj.
Although no national records were broken this year, the event-maintained Bangladesh's rising profile in endurance swimming. The country recently won six medals at the World Long-Distance Swimming Championships in India, including silver medals by both Faisal and Nurul Islam.
With international results improving and domestic competition strengthening, Bangladesh's long-distance swimmers are beginning to look beyond the rivers of home, towards oceans and world stages.
