Nadeesha’s steady rise and Sri Lanka’s chances in the 400 metres

A damsel from Weeraketiya, Nadeesha Ramanayake did not have a fairytale rise to the top of Sri Lanka’s track and field sports. She was successful at school level though never won the first place at an All Island Schools Athletics Championship. Many a top national athletes make their mark at school level.

Ramanayake blossomed as one of the better athletes after she came under W.G.M. Thushara who guided her destiny from a third place finisher in the Under-19 800 metres at the All Island Schools Championship in 2012 to the National Champion of the 400 metres in 2018. She has something in common with fellow men’s 400 metres runner Ajith Premakumara, who, too, emerged as a top national sprinter long after leaving school.

After a long but steady journey to the top of the table Ramanayake will now carry Sri Lanka’s hopes in the women’s 400 metres at the forthcoming Asian Championship which starts in Doha, Qatar on Sunday.

She was unfortunate to miss the opportunity to participate in the last Asian Games in spite of producing a creditable 53.27 seconds to win the 400 metres at the National Championship in 2018. As usual the National Olympic Committee cited the absence of Ramanayake’s name in the ‘long list’ as the reason to omit her from the quadrennial Games. She now has the opportunity to make amends and represent the country after returning a time of 53.47 seconds at the final selection trial for the Asian Championship and reaching locally set qualifying standards.
“My target is a medal of any colour and also to make the relay team stronger,” said Nadeesha.

In 2011 in Kobe, Chandrika Subashini won a silver in the 400 metres in 53.35 seconds. But since then the standards have improved. At the last edition the silver went to a feat of 52.78 seconds. Ramanayake is aware of the challenge and is eager to prove doubters wrong.

She will have the support of Upamali Ratnakumari, Asian Junior Championship medallist Dilshi Kumarasinghe and 800 metres specialist Nimali Liyanarachchi to form a strong team for the 4×400 metres relay.

The 400 metres has been one of Sri Lanka’s premier medal winning disciplines in the Asian region. Once Sri Lanka held the Asian Athletics Championship records of both men’s and women’s 400 metres simultaneously. That was after Sugatha Thilakaratne and Damayanthi Dharsha established the records at the regional event in Fukuoka, Japan in 1998. However the country has been experiencing a slump in standards in this discipline in recent times. There were huge expectations when junior athlete Aruna Dharshana clocked sub 46 seconds to win the Junior Asian Championship 400 metres last year. But an injury forced him out of the final selection trial leaving Ajith Premakumara to try his luck at the Championship in Doha. Dharshana’s closest rival Kalinga Kumara is embroiled in a drug controversy. On this backdrop will the likes of Ramanayake and Premakumara bring some solace to the athletics fraternity? Let’s keep fingers crossed.

By Reemus Fernando