They are going north and the rush is on as Susanthika Jayasinghe declares Olympians and athletes have nothing to lose but to win a medal you need to be another person like her
It is foolhardy for Sri Lanka to even dream of winning a medal at the postponed 2020 Tokyo Olympics considering the chaotic build-up to finalise the nine-member contingent for this month’s summer Games. The scramble to confirm Sri Lanka’s entries to Tokyo either by direct qualification or ‘wildcards’ as Tripartite Invitation Places and Universality Places are generally known, became a game of speculation in the months and weeks leading up to the Games.
The guessing game of who will go or not was further compounded by the lack of transparency in selection criteria. To become an Olympian is the ultimate dream of any athlete but they are beholden to officials who think they are doing a favour to the nation by using their connections to ensure maximum participation in the Olympics.
This was underscored by the top guns in the National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka (NOCSL) at the launch of a publicity blitz to officially announce Team Sri Lanka were gearing up to #defybarriers in Tokyo amid a pandemic and to extend their gratitude to a host of sponsors supporting the travelling contingent. With a dozen media personnel joining the bandwagon, the NOCSL launched their public relations exercise to show the corporate world Sri Lanka is putting their best foot forward in Tokyo.
The fact of the matter is Sri Lanka does not stand a ghost of a chance for a medal. This is the reality and it bites the conscience of the nation when officials get their priorities mixed up to camouflage their partiality. The NOCSL may impress the corporate giants portraying that the spirit of Olympism is alive and kicking in the country but it is far from the truth.
It is evident that some sports bodies are given preferential treatment going by the selection of the two team leaders (male and female) judoka Chamara Gunawardana and gymnast Milka de Silva for instance. If they are going by seniority, 18-year-old Milka is a rookie. Athlete Nimali Liyanaarachchi, a gold medallist at the 2016 Asian Games and 2017 Asian Athletics Championships, is more deserving.
Believing that Olympians are ambassadors for the country at the Games, it would have been more appropriate to hand over the leadership reins to Matilda Karlsson who was the first to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics and would be creating history in equestrian for Sri Lanka. She has already captured the imagination of the world with her epoch-making story of being adopted by Swedish parents as an infant and switching allegiance to her country of birth. Karlsson would have done more to put Sri Lanka on the world map in a sport graced by royalty.
Then Matthew Abeysinghe, who became the first Sri Lankan swimmer in Olympic history to qualify for the 2016 Rio Games, has more credentials than Gunawardana to be the country’s men’s flag-bearer.
The NOCSL secretary general Maxwell de Silva bristled with brimstone and some kind of irregularity when asked how many of their requests for wildcards were received favourably. NOCSL president Suresh Subramaniam stated earlier that weightlifting and archery were unfortunate to miss out on Tripartite Invitation places.
“We received a lot (wildcards) even for London and Rio because of our connections. It is more than what other countries have got. Wildcards are given to athletes who have performed at international level. We got two Universality Places through FINA because the two swimmers (Abeysinghe and Aniqah Gaffoor) were of high standard. We tried to get for weightlifting, wrestling, archery and even boxing. We asked for everything including boxing but we don’t have top ranked players in boxing. If we had somebody like Niluka (Karunaratne) in the list they would have got,” said de Silva.
When asked what the NOCSL expects in Tokyo from the Sri Lanka team, Subramaniam replied tersely: “I am sure they know the task. They know what they are expecting. They know what I am expecting. I am sure they will do their best.”
However, the duo complimented each other in a show of solidarity for a “job well done” during challenging times, enjoying the luxury of even turning down sponsors who were clamouring to jump on board.
Subramaniam described how he had deflected the “negative Press created by the so-called positive people” and turned it around with prudent financial management thanks to Finance Committee chairman Joseph Kenny and co-chairman Lalith Withana.
Having assumed office in 2018, he formed Media, High Performance, Junior Development and Women’s committees. “For sport to thrive there are three pillars – national federations, Ministry of Sports and the NOC. We brought in a new pillar - the Ministry of Education,” he said, claiming proudly that for the first time the NOCSL was able to get the sports and education Ministries together.
He expressed gratitude to the sponsors particularly MAS, Brandix, Hirdaramani and Sunshine Holdings whom he said he knew personally for extending their support with no questions asked.
“I promise you, you will never regret. The 22 million people in this country will remember when our athletes participate this time. Not only this time, in 2024, 2028 and next year’s Commonwealth and Asian Games,” he said solemnly.
“Without your support to Team Sri Lanka, we cannot move forward. It’s finally rupees and cents that matters,” added Subramaniam, a top executive of a leading trading company.
Maxwell placed on record his sincere appreciation to Subramaniam for underwriting the shortfall of Rs 5 million for the refurbishment of the Hemasiri Fernando auditorium at Olympic House. The turning point for NOCSL came when Crysbro partnered them when the market was down, he said.
“We have done all this not for the benefit of Suresh or the Committee but for the benefit of the athletes,” Maxwell claimed while also recording his gratitude to Olympic Solidarity, Olympic Council of Asia and the IOC for their support.
Relating an episode about gymnastics Milka de Silva, Maxwell said she was taken under the wing of the Japanese Olympic Committee two years ago to sponsor her training in Japan till 2024.
“Susanthika (Jayasinghe) knows if we don’t get exposure outside Sri Lanka, it’s not easy,” he said alluding to her training in the United States before her medal winning dash at the 2000 Games in Sydney.
In her motivational speech, Susanthika urged the athletes to compete without fear at the Olympics. “There is nothing to lose, you have all to gain. I feel our athletes are mentally prepared and this is a big opportunity for them to go for their target. You don’t have to feel scared or nervous. You have trained with expectations of bringing glory to the country. So compete without fear or doubt in your ability,” said the three-time Olympian who recalled the many obstacles she faced unlike present-day athletes.
“When I was racing there was no awareness, guidance and sponsors to give us strength and encouragement from the NOC. This is a great blessing for athletes and I feel proud of that,” she said, wishing that they could produce something better than her silver medal.
Speaking further she remarked in lighter vein “there must be a person like me” to win another Olympic medal.
The bottom line is that Sri Lanka is still waiting for another Susanthika to emerge, 20 years down the line.