Police oppose motor races at Nuwara Eliya
Wedisinghe, doing his final lap on that fateful day - Pic Shanuka Aravinda
While the Minister of Sports, Dayasiri Jayasekara, appointed a special committee to probe the motor accident that caused the death of veteran rider Ananda Wedisinghe at the Nuwara Eliya Road Race, the organisers of the event, the Sri Lanka Motorcycle Club (SLMC) has called on for a media briefing to explain their side of the incident.
“There were many comments and criticism on the safety aspects and the legitimacy of the Nuwara Eliya Road Race, which was held on April 23. We have obtained official approval from all the relevant authorities to conduct the race. Those include the approvals from the Sri Lanka Motor Cycle Federation, Sri Lanka Automobile Sports and the Ministry of Sports. We even had the clearance from the Road Development Authority,” spokesperson for SLMC, Senerath Perera stated.
The SLMC issuing a statement goes on to say that it had organised and conducted the Nuwara Eliya Road Race with all necessary requirements intact and it intends to explain further on the safety measures and other arrangements with a press briefing fixed for Tuesday (6).
“It was a pure racing accident, there were other riders and drivers involved in the race and some of them will come to elaborate how the entire event was held. We have everything to prove there was no mishap from the end of SLMC,” he added.
However a high official of the Nuwara Eliya Police told the Sunday Times that the event, now turned out to be a divisive one, has a bad reputation especially in the recent past. During the past ten years Wedisinghe’s was the third fatal accident since 2008. Besides, there were many unreported incidents. Last year a Woman Police Constable sustained serious injuries during the races, but so far she has not been compensated.
“There had been concerns, about the safety of the participants as well as those who come to witness the race over the recent times. We, as the Police, are against it being held, we have gathered evidence from time to time that it is not a suitable event to be held on public roads. We know it’s a long-standing event but the Police opposing alone is not just enough. Now the time has come to reconsider of the future of this event,” the official said.
Meanwhile the committee appointed by Minister Jayasekara on Friday (2) on the accident, is headed by the Ministry of Sports Advisor Milton Amarasinghe.
“The committee will consist of four more high profile individuals under the leadership of Mr. Amarasinghe. The Minister wants a serious and thorough investigation on how Mr. Ananda Wedisinghe met with the accident and incidents that followed,” a Ministry of Sports press release said.
Former motorsports riding champion Wedisinghe passed away at the Kandy National Hospital Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on Monday (29), after spending over four weeks in a coma state.
Wedisinghe met with an accident in the Group Super Motard 450cc Class race at the Nuwara Eliya Road Race held on April 23. Wedisinghe was unconscious for over five weeks and survived with the help of a Life Support Machine during the entire time he was hospitalised.
The Nuwara Eliya Road Race has been under scrutiny unlike other motorsport events held in various parts due to safety and medical recovery reasons. On April 20, 2008 driver Dilshan Bandaranayake experienced a similar accident on his Austin Mini, which was fatal. Since then the race was not granted the required clearance at times by the Ministry of Sports and at times by the Nuwara Eliya Police. Even motorsport experts raise concerns of the safety, which many were of the view that did not meet the required levels.