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| Sunday, 17 August 2003 |
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Success in wheelchair tennis makes Sri Lanka pet country of ITF Disabled soldiers, Bertie Silva and Rajakaruna, produced medal-winning performances at the recent 18-nation Wheelchair Tennis de France 2003 in Paris. The pair performed admirably to turn the 'C' division singles final into an all-Sri Lanka affair Rajakaruna won the gold, defeating compatriot Silva in a close contest. The event fielded 15 competitors, with an Israeli winning the bronze. Both medallists are battlefield victims of the 20-year North-East war. Silva lost a leg in a landmine explosion and shrapnel crippled Rajakaruna. "Our performance surprised many ITF officials and rival competitors. They didn't quite expect us to dominate the way we did, especially as our locally turned out wheelchairs were crude in comparison to the specially built ones of our rivals. Officials thought we had the potential to graduate to the 'A' division," said Major General Ranaweera, Manager of the Sri Lanka's two-member team in Paris and chairman, SLTA Wheelchair Committee. Rajakaruna and Silva were also medal winners in Sri Lanka's first-ever participation in international wheelchair tennis competition, last September in Bangkok. A four-member team won four medals in the Thai Open playing in the 'D' division - successes that earned Sri Lanka promotion to division 'C' in Paris. In what is clearly an acknowledgment of Sri Lanka's rich potentiality, the ITF has pledged support for a five-year plan that culminates with the Paraplegic Olympics in 2008. Only countries ranked in the 'A' division qualify to compete in the Olympics for the disabled, and the ITF has chosen to make an investment in Sri Lanka's promotion to senior most level. "We've become ITF's pet country, not just because of our success in Thailand and France but because the war has left us with a high concentration disabled servicemen, numbering about 4,000," said Col. Chrys de Silva, Secretary SLTA Wheelchair Committee. Under the 5-year plan, the ITF has pledged to provide equipment, including imported wheelchairs, specialist coaches from overseas and assistance for provincial development. Currently, two ITF overseas specialists - Australian Kathy Fahim and Dutchman Taco - are conducting two-month development program in the island. As well, the ITF confirmed it was reserving Sri Lanka one of four wild cards for the prestigious 'A' division World Team Cup event to be held in New Zealand next January. |
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