Yunus to carry flame in Rio

Nobel Peace Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus will bear the torch of the Rio Olympic Games which is starting in the Brazilian city on August 5.

He was 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 country's capital Brasilia on May 3. After traversing more than three hundred cities throughout the country – with 12,000 athletes carrying the torch over 12,500 miles -- the torch relay will end on August 5 during the opening ceremony at the Maracana Stadium.

Professor Yunus will bear the Olympic torch on the final leg of the relay in Rio on August 4, 2016, a statement from Yunus Centre in Dhaka informed 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 [Sustainable Development Goals] -- the New Vision of the World'.

According to the statement, Professor Yunus will be jointly working with the IOC to develop a social dimension to the athletics and the sports world, from the grassroots 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.  

The Rio Olympic is the 31st edition of the modern day Olympic Games, where 39 different sports will be played.