Junior Swimming Nationals - St. Joseph’s, Mahamaya on top

by Leslie Fernando

St. Joseph’s and Mahamaya swimmers put up a remarkable performance to emerge overall boys and girls champions respectively at the Junior National Aquatic Championships concluded at the Sugathadasa Stadium pool yesterday.

Josephians collected 118 points to take the top spot in the boys, Ananda, finished second with 97 points and Trinity were placed third with 85 points.
In the girls overall championships Mahamaya had 164 points followed by Musaeus with 94 points and St. Bridget’s (65 points).

Yesterday two new records were established by St. Joseph’s and Mahamaya u-14 boys and girls relay quartet in the medley relay 4X50 metres.
The Josephians medley relay ‘quartet’ comprising of Shasika Perera, Praneeth Udumalagala, Kaushal Manawadu, Avinash Weerasekera ‘clocked’ 2:16:91 secs to erase the previous record held by Trinity (2:19:86 in 2004) at the National Age Group Meet.

Madhavee Weeratunga, Imesha Malalasekera, Thilini Abeykoon, Sunethra Wijeratne of Mahamaya timed 2:24:84 secs in the medley relay to beat their own record of 2:29:11 secs at this years’ National Age Group Meet.

Shasika Perera of St. Joseph’s achieved a good double winning the boys under-14-50 metres butterfly stroke 31:84 secs and 100 metres back stroke 1:18:10 secs.