Tharushi’s Olympic Hopes Hang in the Balance
Tharushi Karunarathne’s bid for an Olympic berth saw a slight improvement, although the desired outcome did not materialize during the 600m special trial held at Diyagama earlier today. Tharushi, with a personal best of 1:24.84 seconds in the 600m, faced limited competition at Diyagama where she was given pacers to help her course. Despite this, she clocked 1:26.99 seconds, earning her 1146 points. Her average ranking points now stand at 1223.6, up from the previous 1218.8.
Based on the current Road to Paris Olympic ranking list, Tharushi remains in the 42nd position. However, several competition results from around the world have not yet been updated in the list.
In 2023, Tharushi delivered stellar performances, clinching both the Asian Games and Asian Championship Gold medals with a personal best of 2:00.66 seconds in the 800m. However, this year has presented challenges. She did not finish an 800m race during an international meet and withdrew from another, leaving her with only one completed 800m race, where she clocked a modest 2:05.74 seconds before last week’s Nationals.
The Sri Lanka Athletics (SLA) decision to include her in the 600m race paid off in Spain. Tharushi clocked an impressive 1:24.84 seconds, earning 1218 points and securing the 49th position on the Road to Olympic list. Her determination was evident at the 102nd National Athletics Championship in Diyagama, where she won the 800m Women’s Final with a time of 2 minutes 04.22 seconds, earning 1188 points. Her national performance is set to propel her to the 42nd position before today’s results.
The direct qualification time for the 800m is 1 minute 59.30 seconds and will only top 48 athletes will make the cut for the Olympics.
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