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Darsha -
a sprinter all the way
by Farah Macan Markar
 Twenty Years old
Damayanthi Darsha today,
is in Birmingham-England
for the World Indoor Championship Race.
Having left the island on the 11th
and now running it away.
D will next proceed to Jamaica
for a six week training camp stay.
Catching dear athletic D
before she sprinted off,
I had to phone her from home
at seven o'clock.
Born in 1975
February thirteenth,
D first got to race
at the school sportsmeet
Of Panadura Balika Vidyalaya
She was thirteen year old.
D climbed the ladder up
to the place she now holds.
"I've always felt I liked to run
but having no idea how fast I could be
until I met my coach-Sunil Gunawardena
at the age of fifteen".
An International medal winner
D first came to be
in the 1991 SAARC Games
at the age of sixteen.
D next became a winner
in the Junior Asian Games Meet
becoming the 100m record holder
of the under 20 team.
 Of running, she says,
"Some people think it's an easy thing,
but it's not really so
if you want to win.
If you want to be a Champion
you've got to sacrifice a few things,
work really hard
and be mentally very keen.
Even once you get to the top
you cannot stop there and wait.
You've got to keep on running, keep on training
to keep holding that place".
As you can imagine, D
trains ferociously everyday.
Two hours in the morning, two in the evening
in every possible way.
Her greatest fear is the nervousness
she gets before a game,
"But once I start running, I forget everything
and enjoy the race".
So what's it like when she's running?
D says it's hard to explain,
"It's so fast you don't have time to think
you've got to be in it-to understand".
Watching movies, listening to music
her hobbies are.
As a person-she says
"I'm just Damayanthi Darsha".
 Playing netball she likes
and watching cricket on TV,
"But I've no time do it all
because of my running spree".
Her most influential person-her coach
who's been behind her in every way
encouraging young D,
who's role model is Carl Lewis-she says.
Lastly Damayanthi Darsha
who grew up with her athletics,
says to be a winner-"You've got to work hard
and put your 100% to it".
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