Sports
Herath has the potential to break the national record – Vithanage
by Reemus Feranndo
The men’s steeplechase witnessed a new champion after a long time at the recently conducted 98th National Athletics Championships. Eranda Udaya Bandara Herath who has been playing second fiddle to R.M.S. Pushpakumara for some time now, emerged from the shadow of the many time champion to claim his maiden title as he produced his personal best.
“It is a satisfying feeling to win the title against the champion,” said the 25 year old Herath in an interview with The Island.
“It is satisfying because of the circumstances under which we had to train due to the covid 19 pandemic,” said Herath.
The athlete trained by Sumith Prasanna Vithanage clocked 9:00.22 seconds to win, nearly eight seconds ahead of the reigning champion. His performance has earned him the 17th position in the Asian rankings.
The Army athlete who commenced training for this discipline as a school athlete had not even seen a steeplechase when he was first introduced to the challenging event by Vithanage.
“Vithanage Sir saw me hurdling during a practice session and introduced me to the event. That is how I started,” said Herath.
He first tasted victory in his last year as an Under-20 athlete when he clinched the title at the Junior National Championship in 2014. He produced a sub ten minutes feat in winning and he was also the winner of the Sir John Tarbet Senior Championships that year.
Three years later Herath once again clinched a title when he won the Under-23 steeplechase at the 2017 Junior Nationals.
Since then he had been competing against Pushpakumara for the national title. In 2017 he was placed second in the steeplechase at the Nationals and third at the Army Championship.
Herath joined the Army five years ago and was under the guidance of D.M. Dissanayake for one and half years before he rejoined Vithanage.
Vithanage who has trained him since he was a teenager considers his charge as a strong contender to break the national record which has remained unchanged for more than two decades.
“He has the potential to run under eight minutes and 45 seconds. Our target is to achieve that before long,” said Vithanage referring to GSP Mendis’ record mark created in 1998.
Vithanage had another success at the Nationals when his sprinter Fathima Shafiya Yamick was placed third in the women’s 100 metres and second in the 200 metres and will also bank heavily on Amesha Hettiarachchi to achieve World Under-20 Championship entry standards in the 400 metres hurdles when the junior events are held this year.
A meeting between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Jay Shah, Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC), was held on Friday (19) afternoon at the Presidential Secretariat.
Vinicius Junior scored and assisted on one of Matheus Cunha’s two goals as five-time champion Brazil eliminated Haiti from the World Cup with a 3-0 victory.
Haiti, the Western Hemisphere’s poorest nation that qualified for the World Cup for the first time since 1974, became the first team guaranteed not to reach the knockout round. Meanwhile, the Selecao got the decisive performance they needed on Friday.
Cunha, the Manchester United standout, got the start and showed with every surf-and-slide goal celebration why he should have been in the starting lineup in Brazil’s listless 1-1 draw against Morocco. Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti made the surprising decision in the opener to instead insert Cunha as a late substitute.
Cunha thrilled the Brazilian fans who made up the bulk of the 68,324 spectators at Philadelphia Stadium when he tapped in a rebound for his first career World Cup goal. He then sent a left-footed strike into the upper left corner for a 2-0 lead in the first half against the over matched Haitians.
Brazil forward Raphinha, who was subbed out with an injury in the first half, had an early goal disallowed on an offside call that only temporarily muted the yellow-clad Selecao fans in an otherwise festive atmosphere at the home of the two-time Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles — whose cheerleaders did their part to rally the crowd.
Haitian fans danced and sang “Grenadye Alaso” (“Grenadiers to the Attack”), the traditional battle cry of the national team. Brazilians chanted back, reminding them their country is the five-time World Cup champion and the home of the king of football: “A thousand goals, a thousand goals, a thousand goals, a thousand goals, a thousand goals! Only Pele, only Pele!”
Cunha added to the frivolity in Philadelphia, home to nearly 6,000 Brazilian immigrants, when he flashed his familiar surfing celebration.
Vinicius, whose 32nd-minute goal helped Brazil earn the tie against Morocco, helped Brazil get on the board when his shot was stopped by goalkeeper Johny Placide, and Cunha was there to slam home the rebound to make it 1-0. Cunha extended both arms as if trying to catch some tasty waves and was mobbed by his teammates.
Vinicius slid a pass through the defence to find Cunha, and he powered one high into the net that Placide never had a chance to stop to make it 2-0. Cunha slid on his stomach and mimicked a swimming motion that all but put Haiti in the drink — and validated the Brazilians’ fans’ decision not to tempt fate and dress the Rocky statue in team gear for bad luck.
Vinicius closed the half with a goal, and that was enough to keep Brazil — seeking its first World Cup title since 2002 — happy before it closes Group C play against Scotland on Wednesday in Miami Gardens, Florida.
Neymar was ruled out of Brazil’s second straight match because of a lingering calf injury.
[Aljazeera]
World leader Rumesh Tharanga registered his third consecutive Diamond League victory as he beat two-time world champion Anderson Peters for the top place in Doha on Saturday.
The 23 year old delivered a throw of 88.68m to beat Peters (86.38m) by more than two metres.
While USA’s Curtis Thompson finished third with a throw of 85.99m former World and Olympic champion Niraj Chopra was placed fourth with a throw of 85.69m.
With yesterday’s victory in Doha Tharanga now has the top five winning marks of the season. (RF)
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