Rajitha takes legend Wimaladasa’s spot
by Reemus Fernando
Despite the absence of favourites, veteran sprinter Nadeesha Ramanayake and Rajitha Rajakaruna produced outstanding feats in the women’s and men’s 400 metres respectively at the Selection Trial held at Diyagama on Tuesday.
Ramanayake who played second fiddle to Thrushi Karunaratne at the last trial held in March came up with her personal best performance to win the women’s 400 metres on Tuesday. Despite not being challenged right throughout, Ramanayake could stop the clock at 52.80 seconds, the third fastest time in SL history behind Olympian Damayanthi Dharsha’s 51.05 and Chandrika Subashini’s 52.36.
Until Tuesday, Asian Athletics Championship medallist Menaka Wickramasinghe’s 52.93 seconds was the third fastest time by a Sri Lankan woman over the quarter mile. Ramanayake’s closest rivals failed to clock sub 54 seconds.
However, the history-making performance was 15 milliseconds shy of the Asian Games qualifying standard set by Sri Lanka Athletics. The fact that she accomplished the time without being challenged would force selectors to rethink the criteria set for the quadrennial event.
The Selection Meet was held to pick teams for three Asian events, the Asian Games, Asian Athletics Championships and the Junior Asian Athletics Championships.
Ramanayake, competing at the last Asian Athletics Championships in Doha joined Upamali Rathnakumari, Nimali Liyanarachchi and Dilshi Kumarasinghe to establish the current women’s 4×400 metres national record. She was yet to produce a sub 53 seconds then.
Like in the women’s 400 metres, the corresponding men’s event too was without the favourites. Leading contenders Kalinga Kumarage and Aruna Dharshana did not feature in the major selection event. Despite their absence, as many as four athletes clocked sub 47 seconds with Rajitha Rajakaruna piping Pabasara Niku in the last few metres to win in a time of 46.20 seconds. That massive personal best makes him the sixth fastest man in history over the 400 metres.
Rajakaruna can now occupy a slot held by 70s legend W. Wimaladasa, who was once the national record holder of the event. That performance also reflects the massive improvement in the standards in Asia. Incidentally, when Wickramesinghe Wimaladasa clocked 46.21 seconds at the Tehran Asian Games he not only won gold but that feat became the Games record. But today the medal-winning standard in the Asian region has improved to such heights that Sri Lanka Athletics has set 45.70 seconds as the qualifying standard (the average bronze-winning standard of the last three games).
However, despite not reaching the qualifying standard, Rajakaruna can still make it to the Asian Games as the impressive 400 metres performances of Kalinga Kumarage and Aruna Dharshana during the last month and the feats of the likes of Rajakaruna, Pabasara Niku, Pasindu Kodikara and Dinuka Deshan augur well for the formation of a men’s 4×400 metres team.
