19-year-old Medhani Jayamanne stunned fans with a close Silver, while 200m record holder Hima Daas dropped down to 6th place in a nail-biting finishing to the 60th Interstate Athletics Championship, India.
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The final day of the Interstate Championship finished a short while ago in Patiala, Punjab India. Kalinga Kumarage, Nilani Rathnayake and the Women’s 4X100m Relay team competed today in their respective events and finished on a high for Team Sri Lanka.
First up to the task was Heptathlon specialist Lakshika Sugandi, competing in the Women’s 100m Hurdles event. Sugandi brought Sri Lanka its first medal of the meet, a Bronze, with a time of 13.90sec.
Amasha De Silva competing in her Individual event, the Women’s 100m, managed to muscle up a Silver with a time of 11.59sec.
On the third day of the Meet, Nimali Liyanarachchi finished her pet event, the 800m event, in 3rd place with a time of 2:05.69min. Nadeesha Ramanayake was not as lucky as her teammates in the Women’s 400m, as she only managed a 5th place finish with a final time of 54.37sec.
The only Gold medal for Sri Lanka came from Kalinga Kumarage in the Men’s 400m event, where he finished 1st with a time of 45.73sec.
Today (29th June), the final day of the meet, saw the young Women’s 4X100m relay team run its final leg. The team performed beyond expectations, finishing 2nd with an impressive time of 44.55sec. This is the fastest time by a relay team in this event in 19 years.
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Next up was our very own Javelin star, Sumedha Ranasinghe, who finished with a Bronze medal with a throw of 77.28m.
Nilani Rathnayake, who is ever so close to an Olympic entry through her World Ranking, gave up a tough fight in the 3000m Steeplechase event, but had to settle with Bronze with a time of 10:12.02min.
The final two events of the night were the 200m sprints. Sri Lanka won two silver medals in both the Men’s and Women’s events through Kalinga Kumarage and 19-year-old Medhani Jayamanne respectively.
Kumarage finished 2nd behind Preet Love of India with a time of 21.13sec. Medhani Jayamanne, who was probably the best performer of the series for Sri Lanka, led the 200m final until the last few meters. She eventually gave in to Anjani P., who sent shockwaves across India winning Gold in the event.
The night ended with National champion Hima Daas falling far behind in the race and finishing in 6th place. Sri Lanka’s Medhani Jayamanne finished 2nd in a nail-biting finish, with a time of 24.08sec.
Final Medal Table – Sri Lanka
| Lakshika Sugandi | Women’s 100m Hurdles | 13.90sec | Bronze |
| Amasha De Silva | Women’s 100m | 11.59sec | Silver |
| Nimali Liyanarachchi | Women’s 800m | 2:05.69min | Bronze |
| Kalinga Kumarage | Men’s 400m | 45.73sec | Gold |
| Nadeesha Ramanayake | Women’s 400m | 54.37sec | 5th Place |
| Sumedha Ranasinghe | Men’s Javelin | 77.28m | Bronze |
| Nilani Rathnayake | Women’s 3000m SC | 10:12.02min | Bronze |
| Shelinda Jansen, Lakshika Sugandi, Amasha De Silva, Medhani Jayamanne | Women’s 4X100m | 44.55sec | Silver |
| Kalinga Kumarage | Men’s 200m | 21.13sec | Silver |
| Medhani Jayamanne | Women’s 200m | 24.08sec | Silver |
After a 30-hour struggle to get to the track, how do you think our Track & Field team did in this meet? Leave your comments below!
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