Championing Change: Salma Akter Mone redefining history for women in sports

Celebrated Bangladeshi female football referee Salma Akter Mone becomes the 'bti The Daily Star Stellar Woman' in the 'Sports' category in 2023. Stellar Women is a joint initiative by bti and The Daily Star to recognize young and emerging women from different sectors who are taking the nation forward with significant contributions.

The lack of opportunity for women in sports in Bangladesh continues to be a challenge, but one woman persevered with humility and strength. Salma Akter Mone continues to touch milestones one after another. She is the first Bangladeshi female referee to officiate international matches outside Asia. She is also the first Bangladeshi female referee to achieve the AFC Elite Assistant Referee badge. Earlier in 2021 she achieved the FIFA assistant referee badge and subsequently became the first woman to officiate a men's top-tier football match at the Bangladesh Premier League.

Hailing from Netrokona, Salma always had a strong passion for sports and athletic activities in general. During her primary school years she regularly participated in high jump and 100-meter races. She even won first prize at a district-level high jump competition in Mymensingh. Luckily, Salma's family applauded these achievements and always supported her endeavours in sports early on.

Apart from football, she also participated in kabaddi and handball competitions during her high school years. Since there were no formal girls' teams or facilities for female athletes, she played and practiced side-by-side with the boys which allowed her to enhance her skills. She played football up to district level and always felt compelled to do more. It was very difficult to practice and do warm ups during the day time as society would often press her to leave sports. For three consecutive years, she practiced in the stadium late at night with the support of her brother and her coach to avoid societal negativity.

Around 2012, a former FIFA assistant referee noticed her potential and recommended her to pursue a referee course. His words inspired Salma to leave Mymensingh and pursue a career in refereeing in Dhaka. She enrolled in a women's college in Dhaka in 2013 for her higher education and started officiating both men and women's school tournaments.

Surviving in Dhaka alone has indeed been tough for her. With the little income she managed from officiating, she was struggling financially. There were times when her siblings needed more money than her, yet they supported her with finances for her football gear, clothing, gym services, and equipment. In 2016 she was distracted for these reasons and took a break from officiating matches. With the support of another FIFA assistant referee, she picked up her pace and officiated some age-level SAFF (South Asian Football Federation) tournament matches.

She desired to officiate matches outside the South Asian region, but her financial troubles were still catching up to her. She got a job as a sports teacher at an english medium school in 2018. Because of such commitments and her, it took her some time but she managed to emerge as a FIFA assistant referee in 2021. Salma went on to officiate two FIFA friendly matches between Bangladesh and Malaysia in Dhaka and also the SAFF Women's Championship Games in Nepal. In February 2023 she qualified for the AFC Elite Assistant Referees panel and hence became the first female referee to do so.

Apart from her day job, she attends classes and assignments provided AFC on a regular basis. To stay in the Elite panel, she has to pass their exam each year in Malaysia. The exam includes physical, mental, written, oral, and video tests. She recently officiated the 32nd SEA Games in May 2023, involving Vietnam, Philippines, Myanmar, Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore, and Laos. With this stint, she became the first Bangladeshi female referee to officiate an international match outside South Asia.

Salma hopes to inspire other women to come forward in sports with a target in mind. Her advice is to complete education, especially for women from humble backgrounds. She thanks bti and The Daily Star for awarding her with 'Stellar Women', and continues to dream larger than life. "Even if I can't go to the moon, I want to be able to go close enough," she said.