A debating team from BRAC University has won the World Universities Debating Championship (WUDC) 2022, the "world cup of debating." Team BRAC A, consisting of Sajid Asbat Khandaker and Sourodip Paul, students of Master of Science in Applied Economics at BRAC University clinched this title in the finals on 27 July 2022. BRAC A was the first team from Bangladesh to make it to the finals and become champion of the world's biggest debating tournament, held annually with teams representing universities from across the globe.
In the final, Team BRAC A faced Princeton University, the National University of Singapore, and Ateneo de Manila University. During the preliminary and knockout rounds, they outranked Harvard, Oxford, Sydney, and some other prestigious universities.
The WUDC is governed by the World Universities Debating Council, which sets the parameters of the tournament with the rules of debate, eligibility to participate, and the selection of the annual host. Serbian capital Belgrade hosted the tournament this year. The event was held online due to Covid-19.
Earlier, the same team has also become the first-ever Bangladeshi team to clinch the championship title of Cambridge Intervarsity (IV) 2021, one of the world’s most competitive and prestigious debate tournaments, organized by the Cambridge Union.