SLB U-13 squads for Kalutara and Gampaha districts
View(s):A 30-member pool of Under-13 shuttlers from Kalutara District was formed as part of Sri Lanka Badminton’s (SLB) island-wide initiative of forming district squads. SLB kicked off the revolutionary programme with the aim of promoting the sport as well as preparing young shuttlers to compete at local and international events.
The squad consists of 15 boys and many girls, and the selection took place at the Crystal Badminton Courts in Panadura. Roshan Gunawardena, the Chairman of SLB’s Regional Development Committee, along with several other officials of SLB and Western Province Badminton Association (WPBA), attended the selections.
The launch of the other pool included 40 young shuttlers through the Gampaha district, which took place at the Mackro Stadium in Bandarawatte, Gamapaha, under the patronage of SLB President Rohan de Silva.
Addressing the gathering at the launch, the SLB President said “I wish to assure you my fullest support to continue this programme and develop the pools. We also hope to form U-15 pools in future. I wish you all the very best.”
Gunawardena stated that under this programme, it is planned to produce 1000 Under-13 shuttlers and said that the squads will be trained for a period of two years while providing all necessary facilities. He also mentioned that SLB’s main intention is to produce a talented and well-trained group of shuttlers capable of representing Sri Lanka and winning international medals by the year 2030.
The programme that started in Galle District last March, has already spread to Hambantota and Matara districts together with the support of the Southern Province Badminton Association, Moneragala and Badulla districts with the Uva Provincial Badminton Association and the Nuwara Eliya district with the Central Province Badminton Association.
Apart from this, the district squads of Kilinochchi, Jaffna, Mannar, Mullaitivu and Vavuniya have also been formed in partnership with the Northern Province Badminton Association and Kurunegala and Anuradhapura districts with the support of North Western Province Badminton Association and North Central Province Badminton Association respectively.
The Under-13 district pooling programme is sponsored by Mobil, 3M and LiNing.