Sarangi in Asian Games Gold Medal Range
It is not so often one hears of a Sri Lankan jumper setting a world lead distance. Not even during the early years when there was less competition around the world. But on Saturday at Sugathdasa Stadium, 26-year-old Sarangi Silva leapt 6.65m, a World Lead Distance according to World Athletics statistics.
What is more important is that her distance is better than the Gold medal winning distance of the last three editions of the Asian Games. In fact, for the last 22 years the Asian Games women’s long jump was only won once with a distance over 6.65m, which was in 2006 when Japanese Kumiko Ikeda won gold with a 6.81m leap. Even then the Silver medal distance was 6.52m won by India’s Anju Bobby George.
Sarangi who trains under Y.K. Kularathne showed gradual improvement over the years. She leapt 6.38m to win the South Asian Games Gold medal in 2019. She trained in Qatar via a National Olympic Committee scholarship under a Polish coach in 2021, leaping 6.44m during a competition in Istanbul before returning home later that year to set a new Sri Lankan record of 6.48m.
On Saturday she leapt 6.53m in her very first attempt, to shatter that record, but hardly had any time to celebrate before breaking it again with a leap of 6.65m.
“This has been my target since 2019. I have been clearing 6.60m during training and wanted to do it in competition. My prime target is to win medals at this year’s Asian Games and Commonwealth Games,” said Sarangi after the competition.
Meanwhile, Gayanthika Abeyrathne shattered the women’s 1500m record by running the distance in 4:09.12 sec to win the event on Saturday. Last year she clocked 4:11.45 seconds to win the event. She too has now proved she is within Asian Games medal winning range as her time of 4:11.45 has always among the first three places in the last three editions.
If both athletes could replicate their performance in China later this year, Sri Lanka could end the Asian Games medal drought since 2006, as Sri Lanka have won only two medals, both from cricket, in the last three editions of the Asian Games.
Juniors Shine
Two more junior athletes achieved qualification standard for the forthcoming World Junior Athletics Championship to be held in Cali , Colombia later this year. Hurdler from Ambagamuwa CC Dhanuka Darshana , who trains under Sugath Thilakarathne’s coach Anura Bandara , clocked 52.21 seconds in the 400m hurdles final and 52.26 seconds during the heat to achieve the 53.20 sec standard.
Pasindu Malshan from St. Joseph’s College, who trains under former National jumper Nalin Priyantha Rathnasiri, is the other athlete to achieve qualification standard when he leapt 15.68m to win the junior men’s triple jump (qualification standard 15.55m). Pasindu was unfortunate to miss out from last year’s World Junior Championship as he achieved qualification standard but wind speed was over the legal limit during his attempt, which denied him a chance to compete at the world event.
(Pix by Kelum Chamara)
