The tale of three triumphs
The glorious group of 12 - Pic by Akila Jayarawdana
Sri Lankan para athletes have enjoyed an astounding 2021. The icing on the cake came when 12 young para athletes proved their potential to the country and the world, transforming their limitations to capabilities.
The Sunday Times spoke to some of them finding out their personal accounts when the dozen were duly feted and felicitated for their achievements at a function held at the New Hockey Headquarters by the Astro Turf. The event also coincided with the opening of the headquarters for hockey mid this week (15).
Cream of the crop of the trio was – Galina Basnayake – a first-timer at the Asian Youth Para Games, in Manama, Bahrain, and returning with “four medals”.
Basnayake’s success story and her modus operandi of – swimming in the sea – had paid rich dividends of bagging four medals, three of them gold.
She had trained along with her coach, Julian Bolling, going through that hard-grind of swimming between the famous waters of Kinross- Mount Lavinia.
Honing her swimming, she had devoted hours and dove into these waves six-days-a-week in the mornings and twice-a-week in the afternoons. She had set an example for diligence even after the lockdown was released, not even sparing the waters of the police pool, as public pools did not reopen immediately.
The lass from Lyceum Wattala, in her splash in the waters, also recorded her personal-best timing in the S6-10 400m freestyle event, timing 5:25.27-seconds and clocking 1:12.09-seconds in the S6-10 100m freestyle event and 32.99 seconds in the S1-10 50m Freestyle event- sweeping all with golds.
In her fourth and final event of S6-10 100m Butterfly event, it was so close yet so far, she had to settle with silver.
The youngster, in her sweet sixteen, admitted “it’s very difficult being a student”. “Not very well in terms of studies”. But she defended it’s a work-in-progress. Upon her return, life is now back to square to one and business as usual. She said she has not had a breathing space, having to balance between sports and studies. In sports, she’s after two straight swimming meets, including a local tournament she directly had to swim after the international affair. Academics also has made sure, she is down with work, having exams these days.
“There are opportunities out there. You only have to reach out and grab it. Determination and hard work is a must. But most of all, enjoy what you’ve been doing,” Basnayake said of her success mantra.
“No, I just had difficulty processing that I had won it,” recounted Basnayake, on moments after the medals at the meet. She was still the same on the recognition day, and there were hints and signs of her still syncing and soaking in the afterglow.
Joining the club of silver medalists from the tour was – Jason Jayawardena – securing a double delight of silver in the shot put and the discus throw events.
Asked as to how he took to athletics, he explained his personal journey of entering the sport of athletics had started at a rugby grounds.
“I was actually going to do fitness at CR and FC. My coach, Sir Lahiru, saw me and asked if I would try the shot put. From the next week onwards, I had a shot at it, found a liking and here I am,” explained Jayawardena, 16, with the two medals discreetly in his pocket, and not flashing that.
In fact, not only Jayawardena, the entire group-of-12 remained well-grounded despite the weight of the win, not highlighting their medallions and pulling that only when asked.
This is only the beginning for the silver medalist and he intends and is aiming to go for the Asian Games come 2021 and the 2024 Paralympics.
Simply because he is after a victorious tour, arriving with two medals, he is not of the stance he has won the world. Rather, already has set his sights on his next goals, he says.
“I’m trying to qualify for the Asian Games next year,” Jason, a gateway student, said.
The captain of the contingent, Naveed Raheem, along with his 11 team-mates, were gifted a Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 Lite, an envelope containing an unknown prize and a bulky gift hamper, feels “cool” about the overall achievements.
“Yeah, it was really, really cool,” the D. S. Senanayake boy said.
The dozen have dazzled and closed the 2021 calendar of Lankan athletics on another high, after an exceptional and an exemplary win was recorded last August.
In Raheem’s case, 17, the leader of the pack had expected he would come out victorious and he did so contributing to the winning cause with his bronze medal in S6-10 400m Freestyle swimming event for men.
“We did our very best and here the results are. We have four from each gold-silver-and bronze,” Raheem said commandingly, letting the results do the talking.
“There has been a lot of challenges and limitations in this path to awards and accolades. The uphill task has been the events itself. Because there were countries namely- Japan, Iraq and Korea. They were very, very good. We were challenged by those nations and given a run for our money” Raheem added.