The empty handed Lankan Olympic contingent deplaned on our soil at midnight on Wednesday, sans much fanfare or glory seeking politicians and the social wannabe’s who always follow those ‘do-gooders’ like their life’s sins.

However, we feel that every one living in this paradise missed one very obvious point. At the age of thirty four our own gazelle Susanthika Jayasinghe though only managing the semi-finals, still proved that she was the fastest female in the whole of Asia. While sifting through the 2008 Beijing 200 meters women’s semi-final we just noticed that M/s Jayasinghe was the only Asian present in the line-up while even the top of the ‘gold’ China could not produce one female to man that track. The rest of the contestants in numbers were those who came from the Western climes of the earth.

After Susanthika what is in store for us?

Well… never again will we have the fortune to set our eyes on that ‘great female athlete’ from Sri Lanka gracing the Olympic track on behalf of Sri Lanka yet again. I know how proud I felt when they announced -- “On lane eight it’s Susanthika Jayasinghe from Sri Lanka – the silver medal winner at the World Championships in 1997 in Athens”. Without exaggeration, I still feel the chill of pride running through my spine just seeing her with those credentials on the TV screen.

At the same time one thing is very clear, with this gong there came another announcement. It was an announcement to mark the end of the ‘golden era’ of Lankan athletics. The Tillekeratne, Kulawansa, Dharsha, Jayasinghe exploits that held us in good stead in the Asian circuit has come to an end.
Since, High Jumper Nagalingam Ethirweerasingham brought home its first Asian Games ‘gold’ in 1958 – exactly half century ago, Sri Lanka has won a total of ten ‘gold’ up to the 2006 at the ‘Doha Games’. Incidentally five of those gold medals have come in the last decade.

However just to record something significant – In 1994, both Damayanthi Dharsha and Susanthika Jayasinghe had proved their mettle for the future and were seen in battle at the Asia Junior Champions in Djakarta running in tandem. In this tussle, Jayasinghe won the 100metres while Dharsha won the 200metres. Both finished with record timings, which stand to date at these games. Later that year Susanthika won the 200 Silver while Dharsha stepped on the dais to be garlanded with the Bronze at the Asian Games proper.

By 1997 Jayasinghe had put Sri Lanka in the world Athletic map by taking the ‘silver’ at the Athens World Championships. But, ironically Susanthika missed the next Asian Games in 1998 due to injury. However, the Lankan athletic upward trend was on its way. So much so, at the turn of the millennium, the Olympic Games were held in Sydney Australia and Jayasinghe once again was the pride of Asia by taking the Bronze against the infamous American Marion Jones who took the ‘gold.

This is a short narration of Lankan exploits at the Asian Games during the last decade. In 1998 at the Bangkok Games R. A. Sugath Thilakaratne won the 400 metres men’s gold with a timing of 44.93. He also won the 200 metres Bronze with a timing of 20:69. At the same games K. V. Damayanthi Dharsha proved that she was one the fastest in Asia that year when she ran the women’s 200 metres in 22.48 seconds with a new Games Record and then completed the women’s 400metres 51.57 seconds to establish her second new Games Record.

Besides the gold – Women’s hurdler Sriyani Kulawansa won the women’s 100metres hurdles Bronze in 13.08 seconds.

That year Sri Lanka won the very unlikely Yachting Enterprise Bronze courtesy Lalin Jeerasinghe and S. Janaka.

In Busan, South Korea Susanthika Jayasinghe won, the 100 metres in 11.15 seconds while Dharsha sticking to the 400metres recreated her 400 metres 1998 mark at 51.13 seconds. – Once again, it was a new Games Record.

The others who shone at these games were Rohan Pradeep Kumara who won the men’s 400 metre Bronze in 45.67 seconds and then joined Sugath Thilakaratne, Prasanna Amerasekera and Ranga Wimalawansa to take the 4 x 400 bronze in 3:04;37.

At these games K. Edward (Karate men (kata) Bronze) and Anura Rohan Golf individual (men) ‘Silver’ were the surprise packages.

At the 2006 Doha Asian Games Susanthika Jayasinghe took the women’s 200metre ‘silver’ in 11;34 seconds. At the same games Rohan Pradeep Kumara, Rohitha Pushpakumara, Prasanna Amerasekera and J.A.M.K. Jayasundera won the men’s 4 x 400 Bronze in 3:06.97.

Nevertheless, Jayasinghe continued her good work prior to the Beijing Olympics with first places in the 100 and 200 metres events at the 2007 Asian Championships in Amman and took a step further by taking the 3rd place in the 2007 IAAF World Championships at Osaka, Japan.

We have just experienced the curtain falling down on an era that Sri Lanka really took track glory with their heads held high. But, what have we to offer from this point onwards? Just gone was the effort of something that was churned out in the back stage well over two decades ago when Sri Lanka propelled itself to host Sri Lanka first effort for the SAF Games in 1991. What happened then and immediately after kept the momentum for nearly two decades.

But, as we see now, the rest of Asia is leaving us behind in every sphere of activity especially where sports is concerned. We cannot see a plan being put into effect with real concern and foresight in any game including cricket.

At the same time we see some not so technically developed countries like -- Kenya (long distance running), Jamaica and some other West Indian (Short distance), former Soviet Union Countries or so we call them Northern Asian Countries (Field events), Cuba (Boxing) etc specialise in one discipline and make sure they go back home with at least one medal in the bag. We see they have a planned programme rather than our ad hoc preparations.

We now feel the same impatience that one gets while travelling on a rickety old ‘bug fiat’ on a super highway.

Those unconcerned ‘doods’ who only look to hang on and make a quick trip overseas or make a quick buck somewhere with any outfit without being concerned of what the final outcome is would not be alarmed about the present predicament, but, those who are really concerned keep crying “We already have missed the bus”.