Madras-Colombo Regatta on July 24
by Leslie FERNANDO
MADRAS-COLOMBO REGATTA: The Colombo Rowing Club crew comprising of 14
oarsmen and 7 oarswomen will leave on Tuesday July 20 to compete in the
77th Annual Madras-Colombo Regatta to be held on July 24 on the Adyar
River in Chennai, India. The Colombo Rowing Club is the holders of the
Deepam Trophy presented by the Madras Boat Club who will be conducting
and hosting the prestigious regatta.
At the 2009 Madras-Colombo regatta, Colombo Rowing Club came out on
top to win the Deepam Trophy held on the Beira Waters convincingly by 22
points to 20.
According to Sanjay Senarath, President CRC, the 21-member crew was
selected after considering their performances during the meets held upto
June this year. The first Madras-Colombo beat race was held way back in
1898 and with all available details makes it the oldest inter-club boat
race in the world. It is also a fact that this regatta is the oldest in
the region and perhaps boasts of a history comparable to that of the
Oxford -Cambridge boat race. The Deepam Trophy (which means lamp) was
donated by the Madras Boat Club in 1973 to commemorate the 50th
Madras-Colombo Regatta in 1968 and for the first time a ladies event was
introduced.
The most significant aspect of all, however, is the fact that after a
century of rowing, the spirit of the regatta is still very much alive,
said the CRC chief.
The CRC crew selected (men): Udesh Hettiarachchi, Dhanushka Jayanetti,
Ruwan Weerasinghe, Eshan Gunawardena, Sajeev de Silva, Amrith Chariya,
Chelan de Livera, Sajin de Livera, Chamal Jayanetti, Chirath
Karunanayake, Jehan Samarasekera, Ajmal Sideek, Tivanka Jayatilleke,
Dhanushka Perera. (Women): Swarnamali Wijesinghe, Subashani Kularatne,
Hiruni Mendis, Chalani Ramanayake, Nathira Wijemanna, Yanitha Hallock,
Amani Tissera.
The schedule of events - Ladies Scull, 'A' Scull, 'A' Pair, Ladies
Pair 'B' Scull, 'B' Pair, Ladies Fours, Veterans Four 'B' Fours and 'A'
Fours - the main event known as Boat Race.
The members of the CRC who will be making the trip are Dimuth
Gunawardena (Secretary) Varuna de Silva (Captain of Boats), Chevantha
Sirimanne (coach), Sanjay Senerath (President CRC), Lushantha de Silva,
John de Niese. Varuna de Silva, Lushantha de Silva John de Niese and
Chevantha Sirimanne will row in the Veterans Fours (no points).
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