O/L Exam or Asian Youth ? – Youth Athletes in quandary

Sri Lanka’s youth athletes who are eager to win medals at the forthcoming Asian Youth Championship are in a dilemma after the Ministry of Education rescheduled the postponed O/L examination 2020 to coincide with the dates of the Asian Youth Championship.

The Ministry of Education has rescheduled the O/L exam from March 1-11. The Asian Youth Athletics Championship organized by the Asian Athletics Association is set to take place in Kuwait from March 1 to 4. If both events take place on set dates country’s youth athletes will have a difficult choice to make.

The Asian Athletics Association informed its Sri Lankan body of the postponement of the Asian Relay which was scheduled for March 27 to 28 in Songhkla, Thailand but had not mentioned of any adjustments to the dates of the March 1-4 event conducted by their Kuwait counterparts.

The country has been winning medals at this championship from the time it was introduced in 2015. At the last edition Sri Lanka won three medals, two silvers and a bronze in Hong Kong in 2019.

Last year, a number of youth athletes, who are eligible to compete at the Asian Youth Championships, produced outstanding performances which matched the medal winning standards of the last edition. Sir John Kothalawala College, Kurunegala sprinter Sithum Jayasundara and Ratnayake Central Walala middle distance runner Tharushi Karunaratne who established several records at junior events last year are among the brightest prospects. They will be sitting for O/L exam in March.

Sri Lanka Athletics had set February 6 as the date for final selection trial for the Asian Youth Championship.

When contacted on this regard a senior official of Sri Lanka Athletics said that the Asian governing body has not indicated of any postponement. “In the event it takes place as scheduled the youth athletes will have to make a difficult choice.”

Sports officials of the Ministry of Education were not available for comments.

(The Island)