Published : 04 Sep 2026, 02:25 AM
Updated : 16 Sep 2026, 11:47 AM
The sea seems yet to be in slumber. Tourists have yet to fill the beach. Before the first ray of dawn hits the Earth, the girl steps into the water with a surfboard in hand.
She waits for a while, watching the waves. Then she climbs onto the board and races with the waves.
This is now an almost daily scene at Cox’s Bazar beach. But for Cox’s Bazar native Fatema Akter, surfing is more than a regular practice.
Riding the waves, she is now moving toward a stage that she had never even dreamed of reaching a few years ago.
Bangladesh will participate in surfing at the 20th Asian Games, to be held this month in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, for the first time.
As the only female member of the country’s surfing team, 10th-grade student Fatema Akter from Cox’s Bazar is set to write a new chapter in the country’s sporting history.
No Bangladeshi female surfer has previously competed at the Asian Games. Therefore, when Fatema enters the waters of Japan, it will mark a historic moment for surfing in Bangladesh.
The Asian Games will be held from Sept 19 to Oct 4.
‘I Didn’t Even Know What Surfing Was’
Fatema, who is now preparing to compete against Asia’s best surfers for Bangladesh, did not even know what surfing was six years ago.
She grew up near the beach in Cox’s Bazar. One day, while walking along the beach with her friends, she saw several girls carrying surfboards.
Curious, she asked where they were going. The answer was, “We’re going surfing.”
The word was completely unfamiliar to Fatema at the time.
Recalling how her journey to the Asian Games began, Fatema said: “I didn’t know what surfing was. I didn’t even know what a surfboard was.”
Her friends invited her to go along. She was frightened when she first entered the water. The waves, the board in her hands—everything was new to her.
An instructor from the club took her into the water. At first, she lay on the board and rode the waves. Then came the attempt to stand up. And that was when her story began to change.
The Cox’s Bazar surfer said, “When I caught a wave and stood on the board, I really liked it. From then on, I started coming to surf every day.
“That feeling gradually turned into an addiction. Then the addiction became a dream. Surfing has become a part of my blood. I love it so much.”
Fear On First Day; Following Days Bring Dreams
Fatema’s beginning was not easy either. She did not initially have the opportunity to come to the beach with her family’s permission. But curiosity and her desire to learn something new kept drawing her toward the sea.
Fatema said she cried in fear when she caught her first wave. “The first time I went into the water, I caught a wave head-on. Later, when I came out, I was crying because I was scared.
“Then I was given the board again. The second time, I tried to stand up and succeeded. I was so happy. That joy is what kept bringing me back to the beach every day.”
When she returned home, her mother asked: “Where have you been?” Fatema replied, “Surfing.”
But even explaining to her mother what “surfing” actually was proved difficult at the time.
Later, when her mother saw her daughter surfing in a competition, her fears grew even stronger.
Fatema recalled, “My mother said ‘If you do these things, you’ll drown. If you drown, who will help you?’”
Fatema’s response was confident: “I know how to swim. You don’t have to worry about me. Please support me.”
In the end, she received that support.
Loss at Home, Dreams on the Waves
Fatema’s family is not financially well-off. Her father is no longer alive. In a family of three sisters and one brother, their mother is the main breadwinner. To make a living, she works as a cook in other people’s homes and at hotels.
Under such circumstances, pursuing this path was not easy for Fatema.
Moreover, surfing is one of Bangladesh’s more expensive sports, with limited infrastructure. Training opportunities are scarce, while opportunities to prepare at the international level are even more limited.
Yet Fatema never stopped dreaming. Because to her, surfing is not simply a sport.
The athlete said, “When I’m involved in surfing, I forget all my worries and everything else. The moment I’m standing on the waves feels like another world. When I stand on the board, I never want to fall down into the waves. I just want to keep standing on the board.”
Fighting Society’s Gaze
Fatema had to fight not only the waves of the sea, but also society’s attitudes.
A teenage girl carrying a surfboard on Cox’s Bazar beach was an unusual sight for many. She had to endure comments, criticism and taunts, including remarks about her clothing.
Fatema said, “Many people look at surfing in a ‘bad way.’ Many people from our neighbourhood come to the beach to do business. They see our clothes and then go home and criticise us among themselves, saying all sorts of things.”
Such comments reached not only Fatema but also her mother. Some people even told her mother not to let her daughter go to the beach. But Fatema did not stop.
“I don’t listen to these things,” she said. Instead, she asked, “Why don’t they want a girl to grow and move forward?”
Fatema believes, “If you give a girl the opportunity to move forward, her success does not belong only to her. It becomes an inspiration for her family, society and even the country.
“My message is that everyone should support girls. If everyone supports a girl, she can go very far. It will bring a good reputation to Bangladesh.”
‘Never Dreamed Of Getting An Opportunity To Compete At Asian Games’
Fatema said, “I had many dreams of going to other countries and surfing. I never thought I would get an opportunity like this at the Asian Games. Now that opportunity has become a reality.”
Bangladesh participated in the Asian Surfing Championships last year. Based on that international experience and subsequent performances, Bangladesh secured a place in surfing at the Asian Games.
Fatema further strengthened her position by becoming the women’s champion at the 2026 National Surfing Competition. Mohammad Mannan will represent Bangladesh in the men’s category alongside her.
So, it is not just Fatema’s personal battle that is heading to Japan. Bangladesh’s first major international dream in surfing is going with her as well.
Fatema also has an idol. She became fascinated after watching a female surfer on television and now follows her surfing regularly.
Fatema said, “The surfer I follow on television is Erin Brooks. I really like her surfing. I want to surf like her. The thought that I can do it is my biggest strength now.”
