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Botham and the runaway train at BW
Ian Botham had waited for this moment a long time….to come back to the Beach Wadiya, where memories were made in his cricketing days, with cricketing greats the likes of Tony Greg, that genial giant who traces his origins to South Africa.

But when Botham came this time, there was a train that lay between his ambitions for Wadiya seafood and himself.
He was actually expecting to see the ravages of the tsunami, having heard the Wadiya's Olwyn Weeraseekra -- the man first on the global television channels talking of the tsunami which hit like an unwelcome guest last boxing day.

The train - - that unfortunate train that was tsunami-hit, was in a place called Telwatte. But, last week, a train jumped tracks in front the Wadiya. It was all mayhem there, as if the tsunami was being re-enacted in a second dry run….

But nothing could keep Botham from his lobster and prawn. His entourage clambered over wheels, and then crept under an askew undercarriage to get into the Wadiya.

Phew!
Talk about the renowned Botham grit.
Botham is now on a mission much larger than a mere train. With Laures, the largest sporting charity in the world, he is here to identify a project, to help the needy in the tsunami's agonising aftermath.

Botham fights shy of explaining what Laures stands for but he says it has the biggest names in sport such as "Edwin Moses, Kapil Dev, Franz Beckenbauer and Ian Botham.''

We can understand it perfectly, especially with that last name in the list. Laures is a foundation that stands by the motto "sports for good,'' says Botahm and with typical Botham panache, he grabs our hands saying he has to get up at dawn leave for Galle tomorrow to identify the projects. But he doesn't heave that brawny Botham frame out the door without making sure the train is there - - or without making sure he signs Olwyn's newest edition of the story of the Beach Wadiya. After all, Botham's middle name always stands for 'Sports for Good' doesn't it?

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