After tearing onto the scene with a flurry of first place finishes at numerous school athletic meets, Shehan Ambepitiya gained national prominence when he won three gold medals at the Junior Commonwealth Athletic Championships in India. Since then he has been making the transition from a sprinter with an extremely bright future, to one who is on the cusp of stardom.

Shehan Ambepitiya

Currently, the fastest man in South Asia is in India, participating in the Commonwealth Games, where he has secured himself a semi final berth in the men's 100 meters. Shehan has progressed in gigantic leaps since his Junior Commonwealth conquests in 2008, with his most recent laurel coming in the South Asian Games, held in Dhaka earlier in the year. The 20-year-old blistered across the finish line in 10.46 seconds to not only clinch the gold medal in the 100 meter event but also his fastest South Asian moniker.

Blessed with enviable potential, the youngster, who came from humble beginnings, was first spotted by his current coach Sunil Gunawardene, at a junior meet where he was running against three other boys, all of whom impressed him. "All the four boys were good sprinters, so I told them to come to Colombo so I can train them. It was only Shehan who came though and from then on I was able to work with him and also support him," Sunil says.

Part of the support the one time premier national athlete cum coach provided for his young charge was moving him from President's College to Gateway College, to ensure that he studied in English and participated at more International events such as the World Youth Games and the Junior South Asian Games, where he took home gold for the 100, 200 and 4x100 meter events.

Sunil's knowledgeable influence was reaping immediate benefits and not only was Shehan cranking up his speed but he was also clinching more accolades in record breaking time, as was the case in his 10.48 second run in the 100 meters of the National School Games. Sunil, who has also worked with a number of other leading athletes who include Damayanthi Darsha, says that Shehan is one of his most talented pupils and it is greatly pleasing for him to see his development and growth in the sport.

However Sunil does see chinks in the armour of his star athlete that need to be eradicated if he is to progress even further as a sprinter. "His acceleration in a race is not as good as the other sprinters', mainly because if you look at him he is thin and his shoulders and body isn't as big as runners from other countries. He is still young so it will take time before he gets this," Sunil assesses.

The coach also laments that unlike say a Usain Bolt, Shehan, who is roughly 5 feet 6 inches, lacks the natural height that would provide him with an added advantage. However he is confident that his young charge can work past all these obstacles given the dedication he frequently injects into his training (a regimen built of several hours of harness and uphill running as well as power training).

Sunil hosts great faith in Shehan's ability and is confident that the young man will forge on to achieve glorious things for Sri Lanka. For those of us who have been privileged to see Shehan, a lanky bolt of Lankan lightning, flashing down the track, disputing this prediction might be a foolhardy gamble.