Wheelchair Tennis, a sport that has created Paralympians of the calibre of Suresh Ranjan Dharmasena for Sri Lanka, has received a further commitment of support from the China Merchants Foundation (CMF) and Colombo International Container Terminals (CICT) with a donation of US$ 35,000 the equivalent of Rs 12.9 million at current exchange rates.
The donation was presented to the Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA) at a ceremony held September 15, 2022 which is part of CICT’s continuing support to the Wheelchair Tennis Programme of the SLTA, in conjunction with the CMF which is the social responsibility arm of CICT’s parent company, China Merchants Group (CMG).
Commenting on the company’s close affiliation with wheelchair tennis in Sri Lanka, CICT CEO Jack Huang said: “It is extremely encouraging and heart-warming to have been able to make a tangible difference in the outlook for the sport in Sri Lanka and in the lives of the competitors. CICT is happy to be a prominent benefactor to this very worthy cause and we look forward to seeing Sri Lanka’s wheelchair tennis rise to even greater heights in the years ahead.”
CICT has been one of the principal benefactors of Sri Lanka’s Wheelchair Tennis Programme since 2015 and donatedUS$ 30,000 to the cause in 2021 too. More than Rs 54 million has been donated by CICT in support the programme over the past seven years.
The Wheelchair Tennis Programme was initiated in Sri Lanka in 2003 as a rehabilitation programme for differently-able soldiers.