South Asia’s fastest man focused on regaining his best
Yupun Abeykoon is also keen to motivate Sri Lanka's aspiring sprinters
Sprinter Yupun Abeykoon, Sri Lanka’s and South Asia’s fastest man, who missed out the last Olympics held in Paris, is now fully focused on regaining his form of 2022. Abeykoon, who had to sideline himself from competitions after a series of injuries last season, is currently continuing the training process with his team in Italy, with three vital events on his list for 2025.
Abeykoon, once considered a strong contender among a group of nearly a dozen track and field athletes vying for a spot to represent Sri Lanka at the Paris Olympics, was forced to withdraw from the final qualification rounds. The unexpected injury derailed his hopes of competing at the world’s premier multi-sport event for the second time, after having the honour of being the flag-bearer for Sri Lanka at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
“That’s part and parcel of this sport. At one point you are fully focused and committed, that it may lead to unexpected injuries. The timings were challenging when I experienced this, and it massively affected the events I was hoping to take part at,” said the Sri Lanka record holder in Men’s 100m and 200m events.
“Now, the focus is all about regaining my usual form, and even better than that”.
The first and only sprinter from South Asia to break the sub 10-second barrier in Men’s 100m, Abeykoon recorded 9.96 seconds at the Résisprint International held in La Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland on July 3, 2022. He continued to impress at events to follow, before being forced to take an unexpected break.
“Achieving such a timing is a dream for any sprinter. I was overwhelmed when I finally did it. But in another way it also put me under undue stress, as everyone expected me to constantly hit that timing. I too pushed myself extra hard to maintain that consistency, ineffectively, despite winning events,” expounded the athlete, who was mainly inspired by Olympic silver medallist Susanthika Jayasinghe.
Gradually transforming his carrier into professional level, Abeykoon went through many obstacles, while being equally backed by certain experts, who saw something special of him as a youngster, way back. Abeykoon told the Sunday Times that he would willingly repay the good deed by putting his wealth of experience from track and beyond it, to help the country’s aspiring talents. While focusing on his carrier as a pro-athlete, Abeykoon is also eager to set his sights on inspiring the next generation of Sri Lanka.
Based in Italy since 2015 through a scholarship programme, Abeykoon trains under former Italian Olympic sprinter Claudio Licciardello, and has seen and experienced the difference of standards and training procedures that could define a professional athlete from an amateur.
“It’s something that Sri Lanka should adopt if our authorities are really focused in producing medal-winning athletes, or in other words professionals. For now, cricket is the only sport that has turned fully professional in Sri Lanka. Athletics has the potential to become the next professional sport in Sri Lanka, but there has to be a systematic approach,” Abeykoon expressed.
What Abeykoon desires is the gradual development from the grassroots and a cemented programme with national interest to train track and field athletes from the younger stage. For that, the country’s only athlete to compete at the prestigious Diamond League, suggests the backing of the state and other sectors such as corporates and contributors.
“I have seen how things work out here in Italy, and I know it because I’m part of the system. I have a team that oversees the entire process and development of each athlete based on years of data, covering every component such as physical state, environment based predictions, health, nutrition, food intakes and so on. We train based on those data, and any lapses would be easier to rectify,” he explained.
With his constant achievements at various meets across the world, mainly Europe and at other events representing Sri Lanka, such at South Asian, Asian, Commonwealth, Olympics and World Championships, Abeykoon has already stamped his authority as the ideal inspiration for any youngster looking forward for a future in track and field.
At 30, Abeykoon’s total focus will on the upcoming events that he intends to turn out for Sri Lanka such as the South Asian Games, Asian Games and the World Championships. For now, with winter coming as a hazardous hindrance to continue training, Abeykoon continues to train indoors with his coaching staff and team members.
“We continue with our training, but where I will compete during the upcoming season is still too early to predict. My focus is to better my chances of winning wherever I compete. My team mate, last week, clocked 9.90secs during a training and that fact gives me more motivation. However, my main focus for now is the South Asian and Asian games, as well as the World Championship,” he affirmed.
Though many have praised Abeykoon’s heroics on the track and his medal-winning achievements on various circuits across the world, only a few have stepped up to back him on his venture. Currently he receives financial support from Sri Lanka Cricket, the country’s richest sport body, as well as Derana, a local private television and radio network, and the fullest backing from Sri Lanka Athletics, the custodians of track and field athletes of the country. Changeovers of ministers at the Ministry of Sports has failed to see Abeykoon’s achievements that came from time to time, transform into a Asian or Olympic medal winner with a long term plan.
“I would like to have a dialogue with the new sports minister and have a cordial chat. Yes, I have some years left in me to win medals for Sri Lanka, but my main intension is to explain that the country should invest on the future talents just coming out from schools. If they are nurtured appropriately and turned professional athletes, the country would benefit in return,” the selfless Abeykoon announced.
With over hundreds of thousands athletes vying for a final slot in the Olympics in the event Abeykoon is competing, he is well aware that only three from the whole world end up holding the three medals on offer. He sees himself as one of those out of thousands to earn a podium finish in the Men’s 100m at the Los Angeles Olympics 2028. But for now, Abeykoon stated that his focused on rebuilding his momentum, while also becoming the Pied Piper of the country’s next generation of sprinters.