Mahes Sabaratnam - the star sportsman back home on holiday

by S. M. Jiffrey ABDEEN - Kandy Sports Cor.

SPORTSTAR: Mahes Sabaratnam, one of the finest sportsman produced by Sri Lanka, is back in the country on a short holiday after years being domiciled in Toronto, Canada.

Mahes Sabaratnam, it must be remembered, is one of the three triple international in sports produced by Sri Lanka, the other two being Russel Heyn (cricket, hockey and soccer) and Lt. Col. C. S. Fernando (rugby, soccer and athletics).

Mahes Sabaratnam represented the country at rugby, boxing and weightlifting. What is most remarkable in Mahes Sabaratnam's achievement is that he represented the country in a sports where one will have to show one's strength and with physical contact and the strongest is the winner.

With no school background in sports, Mahes Sabaratnam was drawn to sports at the insistence of former national weightlifting coach S. A. Wijewickrema jnr. at the Kandy YMCA. He made very good progress. First it was weightlifting in the middleweight where he established several records in the snatch, clean jerk and the aggregate. It was a case of him lowering a record and breaking it in the number. He represented the country many times in the iron game.

Next it was boxing in the middleweight and known for his knock out punches which often left his opponents in a daze and the referee stops the fight. He represented the YMCA and the country in this sport too.Last it was rugby and he played for Kandy Lake Club, Kandy Rugby Football Club, Kandy Sports Club and CR & FC as a winger. Rugby fans still talk about his sizzling runs which often ended in tries. He is also a bone-jarring tackler. He represented the country and the upcountry and low-country teams against visiting sides such as EMU from England, Paris University, Blackheath SC, London Welsh and the famed Bosuns who ran up three-figure scores against our national side. He also participated in athletics as a sprinter and also won the Mr. YMCA contest in bodybuilding.