Government keen to create ‘sports culture’ from school level
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Veteran sports personalities and ministers responsible of the subject met President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa to review the future of sports activities, at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo.
At the meeting special importance was given to the subject of school playgrounds, in addition to establishing a sports culture to form a healthy, disciplined and athletic society, starting from the school level itself.
“Sport is the youth’s language. Directing a child simultaneously towards both education and sports will raise a balanced individual for society. Ministries of Education and Youth Affairs and Sports have a massive responsibility to bear in this regard,” were some of the important comments made by the President himself.
The requirement of a programme to hone the skills of the students who show talents in sports across the island by providing them proper nutritious food and access to international level training from a young age was seriously discussed by the officials.
Despite the construction of school playgrounds following requests, a top Sports Ministry official stated that it was evident on multiple occasions that they had not been maintained accordingly. “Simple maintenance tasks such as cutting grass are cheap and bearable,” he stated.
Eventually the officials were advised to establish a separate unit to maintain school playgrounds at district level by the chair of the meeting.
Head of the Presidential Task Force for Economic Revival, Basil Rajapaksa requested the relevant officials to restore the school playgrounds within three months, while suggesting that “Provincial Government bodies have the capability to maintain school playgrounds.”
Minister of Youth and Sports Affairs, Namal Rajapaksa noted that plans have been developed to merge the National Institute of Sports Science at Torrington Avenue with the Diyagama Sports Complex to establish a globally recognised Sports University.
Former sports icons Kumar Sangakkara and Sriyani Kulawansa gave their insights at the meeting
The Sports Minister added that in order to create a sports culture it is necessary to look for locations that the young are attracted to play at and construct grounds accordingly. The minister further added that during the past month they have focused on tasks such as taking all the major grounds under the purview of one institute, maintaining 25 fully accommodated playgrounds, new proposals for the sports ordinance and formulation of the new Sports Act and bringing in sponsorships from the private sector to promote sports.
Former Sri Lanka cricket captain and current member of Sports Council, Kumar Sangakkara highlighted the importance of ranking each sport and training athletes targeting international games. Sangakkara also suggested to promote providing marks for sports talents in university entrance in order to popularise sports as well as to breed national level athletes within university network.
The subject of making a gull-scale restructure of the Sugathadasa National Sports Complex Authority was also discussed in addition to focusing on mastering sports such as archery and shooting from school level, which have the potential of winning an Olympic medals.
Top authorities of the Ministries of Education – G.L. Peiris, Youth Affairs and Sports – Namal Rajapaksa, Head of the Presidential Task Force for Economic Revival – Basil Rajapaksa, Secretary to the President – P.B. Jayasundera, Secretaries to the Cabinet and State Ministries, officials of the Line Institutes, representatives from sports associations and veteran sports personnel were present at the discussion.