Sports
Education reforms should include physical education for all grades – Athletics coach Susantha Fernando
Reputed athletic coach and Assistant Director of Education at Wattegama Education Zone, Susantha Fernando highlighted the need to introduce physical education as a subject for all grades from 1 to 13. Fernando, who has been the coach and mentor of many a national athlete at their student years at Ratnayake Central Walala reiterated the importance of introducing physical education as a seperate subject when the government implements the proposed educational reforms.
Fernando, who has influenced many of his charges at Ratnayake Central to become physical education teachers has been a vehemant critique of the merger of physical education and health science in early 2000s.
”One of the major requirements in the schools education system is to separate physical education and health science and introduce physical education as a practical subject from grade one to 13,” said Fernando on the sidelines of the Sir John Tarbat Senior Athletics Championship at Diyagama where he was felicitated by Sri Lanka Schools Athletics Association.
”According to the newly introduced education reforms the subject of physical education and health science are going to be bucket subjects for grade 10 and 11. With nearly 25% of the student population suceptible to falling prey to non transmittable deceases, drastic measures should be taken to address the situation. I recommend physical education for all grades from 1 to 13. This will help students to become physically and mentally healthy throughout their student years. We can not expect a student to be healthy if he or she is confined only to books. Untill 2001 physical education was a separate subject at schools but from then on physical education and health science became one subject.”
”Currently Sri Lanka is the only country where both these subjects are merged and taught at schools,” said Fernando.
Fernando the coach and mentor of Asian Games medallist Tharushi Karunaratne has five other proposals which he consider vital for the development of student athletes.
They are:
Introduction of ‘Kids athletics’ programm introduced by World Athletics from grade 1-5,
Conduct physical fitness tests for students from grade six to 13 each term and include the points obtained in the report cards,
Hold a talent identification test for students in grade eight to identify future prospects in sports,
Make it compulsory for students above grade six to engage in at least one practical sport and
A physical fitness test for all students facing O/L and A/L examinations and grade their level of fitness accordingly (A, B, C, S, W etc..) and include them in the results of the examination.
Susantha has vast experience as a middle and long distance coach. While he has been involved in physical education for more than three decades he has also influenced more than 400 of his charges at Ratnayake Central to become physical education teachers during the last three decades. He has an enviable record of more than 70 international medals as a coach.
He was felicitated for his service on the opening day of the Sir John Tarbat Senior Athletics Championship at Diyagama on Monday.
by Reemus Fernando
Iran says that the country’s institutions are fully prepared for its national football team’s participation in the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
In a statement made to state broadcaster IRIB, government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani said on Wednesday that the Ministry of Youth and Sports ensured all necessary arrangements for the team’s effective participation in the tournament.
She also said the preparations were made under the directive of the sport minister, with a focus on providing the required facilities for a successful performance.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on April 16 that Iran is expected to participate in the upcoming World Cup, taking place from June 11 to July 19, noting that the team has qualified and expressed its willingness to compete despite the ongoing US-Israeli war on Iran.
“But Iran has to come, they represent their people, they have qualified, the players want to play,” he said of the Iranian team’s upcoming matches scheduled in the United States in June.
“Sports should be outside of politics,” Infantino said.
[Aljazeera]
The Olympic cricket stadium for LA 2028 could host Indian Premier League teams in the future as part of its global expansion plans, says Kolkata Knight Riders chief executive Venky Mysore.
Construction has now started on the site at the Fairgrounds, officially known as Fairplex, in the southern Californian city of Pomona in readiness for cricket’s return to the Games.
The stadium will become the home to KKR’s US franchise, Los Angeles Knight Riders and will host Major League Cricket (MLC) matches this July.
It will be a modular venue built in three phases with capacity for 5,000 fans this year, rising to 8,500 in 2027 and then up to 15,000 for the six-team T20 tournament for LA 2028.
Mysore also hopes the ground could eventually stage IPL exhibition fixtures as the competition looks to expand into the United States.
“Wouldn’t that be wonderful?” he told BBC Sport.
“The challenge is always player availability. Once the IPL season is over, everyone’s calendars are packed and they’re running in different directions.
“But the BCCI has talked about a couple of teams going out and playing exhibition games to grow cricket… so that’s always on the agenda.”
The USA is widely regarded as the world’s largest sports market and seen as a key growth area for cricket.
Mysore said there had been “concrete proposals” from both the US and Canada to host IPL teams in the past, although neither have come to fruition.
“This is my 16th season with the IPL and we’ve tried every year, but somehow it hasn’t happened,” he explained.
“There’s a real opportunity to piggyback on what’s happening with MLC to grow the market further.
“When viewership goes up, it has a positive effect on things like media rights. It makes a lot of sense. But first things first – we have to deliver what we’ve started here.”
[BBC]
UAE captain Muhammad Waseem has been fined 15% of his match fee and handed one demerit point for saying the umpiring was biased during the second T20I against Nepal in Kirtipur.
Waseem himself was given out lbw first ball of the match and immediately expressed his displeasure with the decision, indicating the ball was swinging down the leg side. He made the said statement at the presentation ceremony after UAE lost by eight wickets.
It was his first offence in a 24-month period. He was found guilty of a Level 1 breach pertaining to Article 2.7 of the ICC Code of Conduct. Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand, a maximum penalty of 50% of a player’s match fee, and one or two demerit points.
On-field umpires Buddhi Pradhan and Vinay Kumar, third umpire Durga Subedi, and fourth umpire Sanjay Sigdel levelled the charge against the UAE skipper.
Waseem admitted the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by match referee Wendell Labrooy, so there was no need for a formal hearing.
[Cricinfo]
Iran says ‘fully prepared’ for football team’s World Cup participation
LA 2028 Olympic cricket stadium in IPL proposal
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