Karunaratne dropped from South Asian Championships

Veteran coach Susantha Fernando has questioned the credibility of the selection process of Sri Lanka Athletics after Harsha Karunaratne, the reigning national champion in the men’s 800 metres was dropped from the team for the up coming South Asian Athletics Championships.

The South Asian Athletics Championship will be held from May 3 to 5 in Ranchi, India. Unlike at previous editions, Sri Lanka Athletics has picked only one athlete per event for a majority of disciplines in a bid to cut costs.

Karunaratne who trains under Fernando was placed second in the 800 metres at the final selection trial. While the governing body has picked two athletes each for 100m, 200m, 400m, 110m hurdles, javelin throw and high jump, only one athlete each has been picked for all other events from 800 metres to 10000 m and other field events.

Fernando has requested the intervention of the sports minister to include Katunaratne in the team.

“Sri Lanka Athletics has sent two athletes each for the 800 metres for all South Asian Championships and South Asian Games since 1995. On all occations the governing body had picked athletes who had clocked sub 1:50 seconds. This will be the first time an athlete who had clocked sub 1:50 is not picked in the team,” Fernando has stated in a letter addressed to the sports minister.

Karunaratne, the elder brother of Asian Games gold medallist Tharushi, was pipped to the second place by G.K. Chathuranga at the selection trial held early last month. The two athletes were seperated only by miliseconds. While Chathuranga returned a time of 1:49.89 seconds, Karunaratne clocked 1:49.98 seconds.

Fernando has also stated that Karunaratne had recovered from a virus fever just a week prior to the selection trial.

When contacted on this regard an offical of Sri Lanka Athletics said that the governing body of the sport was reluctantly compelled to pick a pruned down team in a bid to reduce costs and all selection decisions were taken after careful consideration of the current rankings of the South Asian region in each discipline.

by Reemus Fernando