Three Athletes to compete in Vietnam eyeing WC qualification
The Sri Lanka team of three athletes left the country to compete in the Vietnam open athletics championship to be held from the 17th to 19th July.
The Athletics Association had selected the team considering athletes with best performance this year and closest to get to the world Championship qualification mark. The team includes South Asia’s fastest man, Himasha Eashan, who broke his own South Asian and Sri Lankan record with 10.22 seconds earlier this year. Much was expected from Eashan, following his wind aided 10.11 seconds during the National trials , but during April’s Asian Championship, he totally flopped ,unable to qualify for the finals. Eashan is now ranked 112 in the world ranking, and will have to finish within the top 32 prior to the qualification deadline or clock 10.10 seconds to earn a direct qualification for the world championship.
Vidusha Lakshani, the only medalist in the Asian Championship is the only female athlete in the team. Vidusha who went for her event with grief of losing friends from the April Easter bombing in Sri Lanka leaped 13.53m in the triple jump, to win a bronze medal bringing a smile for the grieving nation who was devastated by the terror attack. Vidusha is now ranked 51 in the world, and she will have to finish within the top 32 or leap 14.20 m to earn a direct qualification for the WC.
The other member of the team is Olympic Javelin thrower, Sumedha Ranasinghe who threw 80.22 metres this year. Sumedha is ranked 44th in the world by now, and will have to finish within the top 32 prior to the World Championship qualification deadline to make it to the event. He can also earn a direct qualification if he can match his personal best as he had thrown the Sri Lanka record of 83.03m and the direct qualification mark is 83m.
Sameera Lakruwan Perera, Sports Management graduate from the University of Sri Jayawardenepura and council member of the AASL will manage the team for the first time. Young Perera was a 1st class graduate, who now works at the academic sector of the same university, and has given his immense contribution for the AASL for quite a while.
