Sports
Namal’s faux pas
by Rex Clementine
In an interview with a Sunday newspaper, Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa had conceded that every time that an Interim Committee was in place that our cricket had slumped!
Now, there are few things that the Sports Minister is good at like for example playing rugby, driving fast cars and practicing law. In racing, Namal has so many tricks up his sleeve that at times he makes Ayrton Senna look ordinary. In rugby, Namal’s beloved Navy SC made the invincible Kandy SC eat humble pie. In the legal practice, Namal passed Law college exam with flying colours obtaining more marks than the great Lalith Athulathmudali. That all this he achieved while his father was the President of course is a different story.
Anyone who has followed Sri Lankan cricket knows why Interim Committees were put in place and what happened afterwards. The first Interim Committee headed by Rienzie Wijetilleke was appointed in 1999 when the sport had hit new lows. Sri Lanka as defending champions of the World Cup made a first round exit in England and there were many who had to pay the price – captain, selectors and the board.
The new selection panel headed by Sidath Wettimuny did sweeping changes and blooded in youth. The very first series after the changes were made Sri Lanka not only beat Australia in a Test match for the first time but won a tri-nation series beating Steve Waugh’s side in the grand final. This was less than two months after they had become World Champions.
Many young players were blooded in at that time, including one Kumar Sangakkara who sits on the Technical Advisory panel that the Minister of Sports has appointed. Maybe Namal will be better off learning from Sanga what Interim Committees have done for the sport.
There was a second Interim Committee headed by Vijaya Malalasekara in 2001. At that time, the national cricket team went onto win ten matches in a row, still a record.
The head of third Interim Committee was leading businessman Hemaka Amarasuriya, who was appointed in 2002. His crowning moment was successfully conducting the inaugural ICC Champions Trophy in Colombo 2002, the biggest sporting spectacle Sri Lanka had conducted at that point. Sri Lanka ended the competition in flying colours finishing as joint-champions along with India after the final was rained off.
Namal’s illustrious father himself appointed several Interim Committees. So when Namal says that the performances of the team suffered when Interim Committees were in place, he is in fact pointing figures at Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. The truth is far from that. Someone seems to be taking the Minister on a ride and the sooner he realizes that the better it is.
Sri Lanka Cricket seems to be not having too many supporters these days given the blunders they have committed in recent weeks. But Namal seems to be their biggest fan. The other day, he misled the Parliament by taking Chaminda Vaas to task for not going on the tour of West Indies conveniently forgetting several lapses on the part of the men who are running cricket.
Some stakeholders of the game have pointed it out that the term of the office bearers of SLC who were elected on the 21st February 2019 had ended on the 20th of February 2021 and are not legally entitled to hold office as they have been appointed for a period of two years.
The stakeholders have demanded that either an Interim Committee is appointed or run the affairs of SLC through a Competent Authority like the Secretary of the Ministry as it has been done on previous occasions.
However, the Minister of Sports seems to be passing the buck on claims what are actually false; like Sri Lanka performing poorly when Interim Committees are in place.
The current administration cut a pathetic figure unable to answer questions at the COPE. More sickening details are expected to be exposed when COPE summons officials again. One question that everyone seems to be wondering is how a sum of US$ 180,000 disappeared to an offshore account in Mexico and who swindled that money!
The Minister of Sports needs to get his act together and information right before he tilts at windmills.
There was a feeling of deja vu on the first day of action at the World Athletics Indoor Championships Nanjing 25.
Three of the gold medallists – 60m winner Jeremiah Azu, triple jump champion Andy Diaz Hernandez, and pentathlon gold medallist Saga Vanninen – stood atop a major podium for the second time this month, having struck gold at the recent European Indoor Championships two weeks ago.
The two other winners today, shot put champion Sarah Mitton and high jump victor Woo Sanghyeok, collected their second world indoor titles, having won in previous editions.
Diaz Hernandez was the first winner of the day, taking triple jump gold with a world-leading 17.80m to break his own outright Italian record.
Another jumps gold was decided in the evening session as Woo regained the title he first won in 2022, beating Olympic champion Hamish Kerr with a winning leap of 2.31m.
A high-quality shot put tussle resulted in Mitton retaining her crown with 20.48m. The pentathlon reached its conclusion at a similar time as Vanninen landed gold with 4821.
The evening session drew to a close with the men’s 60m final as Azu held off a strong challenge from Australia’s Lachlan Kennedy to take gold by 0.01 in 6.49.
[World Athletics]
Boxing heavyweight legend George Foreman has died aged 76, according to his family.
Known as Big George in the ring, the American built one of the most remarkable and enduring careers in the sport, winning Olympic gold in 1968 and claiming the world heavyweight title twice, 21 years apart – the second making him the oldest champion in history aged 45.
He lost his first title to Muhammad Ali in their famous Rumble in the Jungle fight in 1974. But Foreman’s professional boxing career boasted an astonishing total of 76 wins including 68 knockouts, almost double that of Ali.
He retired from the sport in 1997 but not before he agreed to put his name to a best-selling grill – a decision that went on to bring him fortunes that dwarfed his boxing earnings.
His family said in a post on Instagram on Friday night: “Our hearts are broken.
“A devout preacher, a devoted husband, a loving father, and a proud grand and great grandfather, he lived a life marked by unwavering faith, humility, and purpose.”
The statement added: “A humanitarian, an Olympian, and two time heavyweight champion of the world, He was deeply respected – a force for good, a man of discipline, conviction, and a protector of his legacy, fighting tirelessly to preserve his good name – for his family.”
Foreman was born in Marshall, Texas, on 10 January 1949, and raised along with six siblings by a single mother in the segregated American South.
He dropped out of school and turned to street robberies before eventually finding his outlet in the ring.
Foreman won the heavyweight gold medal at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, aged 19, before turning pro and winning 37 consecutive matches. He lost only five bouts over his career.
He beat previously undefeated reigning champion Joe Frazier in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1973 knocking him down six times in the first two rounds.
His 1974 Rumble in the Jungle against Ali in Kinshasa, Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of the Congo, remains one of the most famous boxing matches ever.
Ali, the older man, was the underdog after he was stripped of his crown seven years earlier for refusing to be drafted into the Vietnam War.
Foreman reflected on the legendary fight 50 years later in an October interview with BBC World Service Newshour, explaining that everyone thought he was going to decimate Ali.
“Oh, he’s not going to last one round,” the boxer said experts were predicting at the time.
Foreman told the BBC he typically would get “real nervous” and have “butterflies” before any boxing match, but that night – it was the “most comfortable” he had felt.
But the wily Ali used a tactic that later became known as “rope-a-dope”, which wore out Foreman, causing him to throw out hundreds of punches before Ali unloaded on him in the eighth round and scored a knockout.
After a second professional loss, Foreman retired in 1977 and became an ordained minister at the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ in Texas, which he founded and built.
He told the BBC his defeat to Ali became the “best thing that ever happened to me” as it ultimately led him to “get my message out” through preaching.
He recalled that his preaching started small, on street corners and with friends, then grew.
“We began meeting informally at various homes in Houston, and before long, the crowds became too large for most houses to accommodate,” Foreman said on his website.
“Eventually, we bought a piece of land and an old, dilapidated building on the north-east side of Houston.”
Foreman came out of retirement in 1987 to raise money for a youth centre he founded. He won 24 matches before losing to Evander Holyfield after 12 rounds in 1991.
In 1994, Foreman knocked out undefeated Michael Moorer to become the oldest ever heavyweight champion at age 45.
He became ad pitchman for his George Foreman Grill, which millions have purchased since it hit the market in 1994, thanks in part to his memorable catchphrase, the “Lean Mean Grilling Machine”.
Foreman was married five times. He has a dozen children, including five sons who are all named George.
He explained on his website that he named them after himself so they “they would always have something in common”.
“I say to them, ‘If one of us goes up, then we all go up together,” he explained. “And if one goes down, we all go down together!'”
[BBC]
World Indoor Championship
Sprinter Chamod Yodasinghe reached the semi-finals of the 60 metres dash with a remarkable sprint performance on day one of the World Indoor Athletics Championship in Nanjing China on Friday.
Competing in heat two the athlete trained by Sanjeewa Weerakkody clocked a blistering time of 6.70 seconds shared by USA’s Coby Hilton and Switzerland’s William Reais. The trio were separated by photofinish with Coby Hilton, William Reais and Yodasinghe given first, second and third places respectively.
In the semi-finals which was worked off in the afternoon, Yodasinghe finished last.
Yodasinghe’s heat performance was ranked 24th among a field of 58 athletes who faced starter’s orders in eight heats.
His impressive achievement was a massive consolation for Sri Lanka after 400 metres specialist Kalinga Kumarage missed his heat due to a technical issue. Secretary of Sri Lanka Athletics said that Kumarage could not collect his accreditation in time to take part in the heat. He was scheduled to compete in the fifth heat which was won by Canada’s Morales Williams (45.85secs). Only two qualified from that heat. While the second placed Jacory Paterson of USA clocked 45.94 seconds others failed to finish under 47 seconds.
Sri Lanka’s contingent of 12 athletes is the biggest by the country to a World Indoor Athletics Championship. While Yodasinghe, Kumarage and Kaveesha Bandara compete in individual events, others will take part in the men’s and women’s 4×400 metres relay finals.
Former Royal College Colombo hurdler Bandara will compete in the 60 metres hurdles today (Saturday).
The men’s and women’s 4×400 metres relays will take place on Sunday.
In the morning, the championships’ first gold medal was won by Italy’s Andy Diaz Hernandez who soared to a world lead and national record of 17.80m in the men’s triple jump.
That feat moved him to fifth on the world indoor all-time list, the mark is the third-farthest leap in World Indoor Championships history and the farthest since the 17.90m – then a world indoor record – achieved by Teddy Tamgho at the 2010 edition in Doha
Three years after taking gold in Belgrade, Woo Sanghyeok won his second world indoor high jump title. The Korean was the only athlete to go clear at 2.31m, doing so on his first try. Defending champion and Olympic gold medallist Hamish Kerr was second with 2.28m, taking silver on countback ahead of Jamaica’s Raymond Richards.
by Reemus Fernando
Recent history repeats for first five gold medallists at WIC Nanjing 25
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