Rising Police boxing star Prasanna hungry for international glory
Rukmal Prasanna (L) with police assistant coach Rusiru Opanayake
Former Sri Lanka youth international Rukmal Prasanna was pleasantly surprised to be adjudged the most scientific boxer at the 94th National Boxing Championship but the 20-year-old southpaw richly deserved this accolade for displaying technical excellence in an age where brawn prevails over brain in the ring.
Having beaten a tough soldier Thilina Weerakkodi, a silver medallist at the South Asian Games in 2016, in the semifinals, Prasanna earned a unanimous decision against another promising talent Nuwan Amarawansha in a classic battle of southpaws in the Bantam (56kg) weight class to become national champion for the first time.
In recognition of his prodigious talents and skills, he was awarded the coveted Sir Henry William Manning Cup, bringing glory to Police Sports Club, three decades after S.N. Gunaratne achieved this feat.
More significantly it was a fitting reward for his pluck and courage after missing out on representing Sri Lanka when he was forced to skip the selection trials after sustaining an egg-sized swollen eye during the Layton Cup meet, a scar which he still carries.
“I didn’t expect to become national champion but I was determined to win and trained hard,” said Rukmal a former student of Gamini Central, Ingiriya who was drawn into boxing by the school PTI Dimuthu Dinesh Fernando. He swept all before him winning the L.V. Jayaweera, T.B. Jayah and Stubbs Shield meets in 2013 where he was adjudged Junior Best Boxer.
Emerging as a top schoolboy talent, he lived up to his early promise to win a bronze medal during a tour of Bulgaria in 2016 and also represented Sri Lanka at Asian Youth tournaments in Thailand and Kazakshtan in 2017.
Signing up for Police in 2018, he won the gold medal at the Novices meet but had to settle for bronze in the Layton and National championships. Adjudged Best Boxer at the Intermediates meet last year, he once again had to be content with a bronze at the Layton Cup after suffering the eye injury which nearly derailed his boxing career.
Third in a family of three, he followed his brother into boxing. A school drop-out, he is determined to box his way out of economic hardships. “I want to bring a medal for Sri Lanka at the Olympics,” said Prasanna who has the hunger and desire to excel at international level. He hopes to get a permanent job in Police expressing his gratitude to Police boxing chairman Senior DIG C.D. Wickramaratne, Police boxing secretary ASP Aruna Katugampola and Director of Sri Lanka Police College SSP Pushpakumara Hewacottage for their encouragement apart from coaches Sameera Karunaratne and Rusiru Opanayake who trains him in Kalutara.