Sports

Gayanthika, Nilani, Sarangi and schoolgirl Tharushi among top athletes in 2022

Published

3 years ago

2022/12/31

by Reemus Fernando

Having improved the national record of the women’s 800 metres twice this year Gayanthika Abeyratne was easily the country’s top performer in the women’s category in track and field sports in 2022. While 100 metres remained the most closely contested track discipline in the women’s category, steeplechaser Nilani Ratnayake, long jumper Sarangi Silva and schoolgirl Tharushi Karunaratne made their presence felt to a great extent during the year.

There were no big victories at major international multisport events for Sri Lanka in the women’s category. The Asian Games, the only event where Sri Lanka were aiming for medals was postponed. In its absence, long jumper Sarangi Silva and Abeyratne produced some top performances elsewhere to secure top-ranking places in the Asian region.

Sarangi’s record-breaking 6.65 metres leap at the First Selection Trial in February was an ideal start to the season where she was aiming to qualify for both the Asian Games and the World Athletics Championships. She had to give up on the World Championships after being included in the team at the eleventh hour as she prioritized Commonwealth Games. There she produced jumps over six metres and qualified for the final as the tenth best jumper for a feat of 6.42 metres. Her national record jump of 6.65 metres is ranked as the third-best jump by a female athlete in Asia this year.

Competing against a strong field inclusive of Olympic, World Championship and Pan American Championship medallists, winning a medal was not a priority for Abeyratne at the Commonwealth Games. Hence she took the opportunity to deliver her lifetime best (2:01.20) to create a new national record in the 800 metres at Birmingham.

In a World Championship year, most of the athletes suffered without top-grade competitions to improve their world rankings. Nilani Rathnayake who missed the last Olympics due to the same reason spent a better part of the year waiting for an opportunity. What placed her among the top ten in Asia this year was her record-breaking performance at the Centenary National Championships. She clocked 9:40.24 seconds to improve on her own record in the meet held in April.

The untimely death of national 400 metres hurdles champion Kaushalya Madushani shocked the athletics fraternity early this year. The heartbreaking news came just a day after the National Championship was concluded. Months after her death, she remains one of the top ten athletes in the country according to the World Athletics rankings.

Among the top ten athletes in the female category are four 100 metres sprinters. Amasha de Silva, Lakshika Sugandi, Rumeshika Ratnayake and Medhani Jayamanne according to World Athletics’ year end rankings.

Ratnayake Central, Walala athlete Tharushi Karunaratne is the only school athlete among the top ten ranked athletes in the country. Her prowess in the 400 metres and the 800 metres has powered her to a number of Junior International events. However, the news of her 400 metres victory against seasoned national athletes at the Centenary National Championships doesn’t seem to have reached the authorities of the Central Province. The year came to an end with the shocking news of her being verbally abused by stadium authorities at Digana Sports Complex. At a time when students give up on sports in the current economic downturn, the likes of Karunaratne must be well looked after. It remains to be seen whether the sports authorities have a genuine interest in doing so.

Highest Ranked Female Athletes in 2022

Gayanthika Abeyratne 800m
Nilani Rathnayake 3000m Steeple chase
Sarangi Silva long jump
Tharushi Karunaratne 400m, 800m
Amasha de Silva 100m
Lakshika Sugandi 100m, 100m hurdles
Nadeesha Ramanayake 400m
Rumeshika Ratnayake 100m
Kaushalya Madushani 400m, 400m hurdles
Medhani Jayamanne 100m, 200m

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Sports

SLAF men’s Judo team crowned overall champs at 62nd National Judo Championship

Published

4 hours ago

2026/02/5

Priyan

The Sri Lanka Air Force Men's and Women's Judo Teams with officials

The Sri Lanka Air Force [SLAF] Men’s Judo Team emerged overall champions in the Men’s Category at the 62nd National Judo Championship organized by the Sri Lanka Judo Association, reclaiming the prestigious title for the first time since 2014.

The championship was held from 30 January to 01 February 2026 at the Indoor Stadium of the Ministry of Sports, Sri Lanka, with the awards ceremony conducted at the same venue on 01 February 2026.

The awards ceremony was graced by Air Commodore Manoj Galappaththi, Chairman of SLAF Judo, Group Captain MADCI Gunasinghe, Secretary of SLAF Judo, and Wing Commander HDTNS Hettiarachchi, Assistant Secretary of SLAF Judo, along with several senior officers representing the tri-services.

The SLAF Men’s Judo Team secured the overall championship in the Men’s Category with a medal tally of six gold medals, three silver medals and six bronze medals.

Meanwhile, the SLAF Women’s Judo Team delivered a commendable performance to secure the Overall Runners-up position in the Women’s Category, winning four gold medals, four silver medals and six bronze medals.

Further highlighting the SLAF’s success, Sergeant Chamara Dharmawardana was adjudged the ‘Best Male Judo Player’ for the ninth consecutive year, continuing a notable record in Sri Lankan Judo. In recognition of emerging talent, Mr. Wipulaweera was awarded the ‘Emerging Player of the Year’ in the Men’s Category, while Leading Aircraftwoman Yapa YMMM received the ‘Emerging Player of the Year’ in the Women’s Category award. In addition, Leading Aircraftman Hansamal KST was recognized as the ‘Best Ippon Player’ of the championship.

Summary of results

Gold Medalists
Mr. Wipulaweera (66 Kg)
Sergeant Darmawardana RCN (73 Kg)
Leading Aircraftman Hansamal KST (81 kg)
Leading Aircraftman Osman MI (Over 70 kg)
Sergeant Darmawardana RCN (Open Event-Men )
Leading Aircraftwoman Yapa YMMM (57 Kg)
Leading Aircraftman Samaraweera HVPCSD (63 Kg)
Leading Aircraftman Wickramasinghe RMSP (Over 78 Kg)

Team Event (Mix)
Sergeant Darmawardana RCN
Leading Aircraftman Osman MI
Leading Aircraftman Hansamal KST
Leading Aircraftwoman Upamali IR
Leading Aircraftwoman Bandara BGNK
Sergeant Lakshani MGU

Silver Medalists
Leading Aircraftman Arachchi WAASW (73 Kg)
Corporal Mahesh TP (90 Kg)
Leading Aircraftman Hansamal KST (Open Event -Men)
Leading Aircraftman Premalal UKGAN (44 Kg)
Leading Aircraftwoman Bandara BGNK (52 Kg)
Leading Aircraftwoman Upamali IR (70 Kg)
Sergeant Lakshani MGU (Over 78 Kg)

Bronze Medalists
Leading Aircraftman Madushanka RMSL (50 kg)
Leading Aircraftman Weerasinghe RSN (55 Kg)
Mr. Wipulaweera (60 kg)
Corporal Kumara SD (81 kg)
Corporal Abesinghe KGCK (Under 100kg)
Leading Aircraftwoman Priyanthi S (48 Kg)
Aircraftwoman Rupasinghe DGITS (48 Kg)
Leading Aircraftwoman Senarathna JASS (52 Kg)
Leading Aircraftwoman Chathurangani BAI (63 kg)
Leading Aircraftwoman Deumini TML (78 Kg)
Leading Aircraftwoman Upamali IR (Open Event- Women)
Corporal Kumara SD (Open Event – Men)

Sports

Sri Lanka’s mindset muddle clouds World Cup hopes

Published

11 hours ago

2026/02/5

Sahan Weerasooriya

Sri Lanka's batting unit failed to chase down 129 runs in the third T20I at Pallekele and suffered a 3-0 whitewash.

A home series against England was meant to be the ideal dress rehearsal, a chance for Sri Lanka to oil the wheels and gather momentum ahead of the World Cup starting later this week. Instead, the campaign has gone awfully wrong. Plenty of promise, precious little substance. Bar the lone victory in the opening ODI, the hosts have spent the white-ball leg chasing shadows, the ODI series defeat a bitter pill and the T20I whitewash a full-blown reality check. Sri Lanka’s frailties against spin were already an open secret; this series merely put them under a brighter spotlight, throwing up more questions than answers.

Handing three wickets in an over to a part-timer like Jacob Bethell is the sort of generosity normally reserved for charity matches. Failing to hunt down 129 on surfaces the batting unit has been reared on, rank turners that should feel like home cooking, tells its own grim tale.

The malaise is rooted in mindset. Too many batters are reaching for the glory shot, swinging from the heels when the situation demands nudges into gaps, hard yards between the wickets and a willingness to play the waiting game.

Cricket, after all, is not always about clearing the ropes; sometimes it is about milking the bowling and letting the scoreboard tick over. Unless these rough edges are sanded down, Sri Lanka risk walking into the World Cup with the same old cracks papered over.

Recent T20 World Cups have been a sobering reminder of how far the side has drifted. A meek first-round exit last time and the indignity of qualifying rounds before that should have set alarm bells ringing. Yet, carrying largely the same cast into a fourth successive global event, the team continues to tread water, repeating errors like a stuck record rather than turning the page.

One positive has been the improved handling of injuries that once felled key players at the worst moments, but elsewhere the repair job remains half-finished.

The biggest question mark hovers over captain Dasun Shanaka. A skipper struggling to read the wrong’un, let alone steer a chase, can quickly become dead weight. His elevation came out of the blue and the warning signs were there from day one, but they were waved away. Cricket, like life, has a habit of punishing stubbornness, and Sri Lanka are discovering that harsh truth the hard way.

Rex Clementine at Pallekele

Sports

Kishan leads India’s batting show in warm-up win over South Africa

Published

11 hours ago

2026/02/5

Priyan

Ishan Kishan gets creative and launches a six [Cricinfo]

India’s explosive batting juggernaut rolled on to the doorstep of the men’s T20 World Cup 2026, helping them beat South Africa by 30 runs in the warm-up fixture at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. The margin of defeat only reduced because of two overs of 22 and 20 against Shivam Dube at the death.

Opting to bat at a ground which saw teams preferring to chase in the first leg of WPL 2026, Ishan Kishan got India off to an explosive start. He rollicked to a 20-ball 53, which included a sequence of 6, 6, 4, 6 in the fifth over from Anrich Nortje, before retiring out as India finished the powerplay on 83 for 1. Tilak Varma, who played the warm-up for India A a couple of nights ago at the same venue and linked up with the Indian squad just before this warm-up game, looked fluent from get-go in his 19-ball 45.

Suryakumar Yadav as well as Hardik Pandya later freed their arm without inhibition as India posted a mammoth 240 for 5. Nortje, who has played just one international since the last T20 World Cup, conceded 57 in his three overs on the night, after his comeback game against West Indies last week also gave him figures of 3-0-59-0. Kagiso Rabada, too, was expensive, going for 44 off his three overs.

For South Africa, Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickelton added 65 in just five overs in the powerplay. Markram hit four sixes in his 19-ball 38 while Rickelton, batting at No. 3, made 44 off 21. But they kept losing wickets regularly and had lost half their side by the 11th over.

Jason Smith, Tristan Stubbs and Marco Jansen kept peppering the boundaries to punish Abhishek Sharma and then Dube but the challenge was too steep by then.

Brief scores:
India 240 for 5 in 20 overs (Ishan Kishan 53, Tilak Varma 45, Axar Patel 35*; Marco Jansen 1-18) beat South Africa 210 for 7 in 20 overs (Tristan Stubbs 45*, Ryan Rickelton 44, Aiden Markram 38, Jason Smith 35; Abhishek Sharma 2-32) by 30 runs

[Cricinfo]