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Kolkata, the 'City of Joy', on Sunday witnessed the celebration of the AFC Women’s Football Day, as management institute IIHM, in association with AIFF match commissioner Aparup Chakraborty, hosted a six-team women’s football competition at the Spring Club.
The AFC Women’s Football Day, which coincides with the International Women’s Day (8th March), was inaugurated in 2015 with a view to celebrating and helping the growth of women’s football in Asia.
IIHM, which has previously hosted notable events like the Young Chef Olympiad, has also lent out its support to Chakraborty in hosting junior-level football competitions such as Slum Soccer and Baby Leagues in the past. Former British diplomat-turned-rugby coach Paul Walsh, who founded the Kolkata-based rugby team Junglee Crows in 2007, was invited as the chief guest for the event.
The six teams participating in the tournament were ‘Super Woman’, ‘Spider Woman’, ‘Thunder Woman’, ‘Harley Quinn’, ‘Wonder Woman’ and ‘Mystic Woman’. The final was contested between Super Woman and Harley Quinn, which Super Woman won 2-0. Bidisha Bepari of Harley Quinn won the award for the best goalkeeper of the competition, while Super Woman’s Mamoni Das was adjudged the player of the tournament.
Aparup Chakraborty, who sent both Bengal’s men’s and women’s teams to the SONY Slum Soccer Championship in Mumbai last month, said that the initiative aims at "bringing together women belonging to different sections of the society through football" irrespective of their caste, creed, race, religion, and colour.
"Our aim is to scout these talents, motivate them to participate and have a new beginning. We aim for ‘Football for Unity’, which nurtures a spirit of sportsmanship in all," he further added.
According to the Founder and chief mentor of IIHM, Dr. Suborno Bose, "International Women’s Day is a celebration of women in all their glory. However, let us dream of a day in the near future when we will celebrate and respect women all throughout the year and every single day of our lives."
