My father was an inspiration to me - Solange

Solange Gunawijeya, the Sri Lanka's double national player in basketball and netball, says that her father was the tower of strength of her sporting career .

The 22-year-old, who represented both Sri Lanka national basketball team and the national netball team at the age of 14 in 2005, and current national basketball player, suffered a huge blow in her life, when her beloved father Hiran Anthony Gunawijeya (48) passed away after a brief illness on February 9.

"My father guided me to be a good sportswoman in the country. He was the tower of strength of my sporting career," said Gunawijeya, who is attached to Sri Lanka Navy, where she sharpens her basketball skills currently.

Gunawijeya not only excelled in her sporting career but also she was the last year's Derana Veet Miss Sri Lanka. The 5' 9'' tall athlete was an automatic choice for the basketball and netball during her school days in St Joseph's Balika Vidyala, Nugegoda.

She represented school's basketball and netball teams from Under-13 age category and clinched the All Island Most Valuable Player in basketball.

Gunawijeya won school's colours and Western Province colours during the year 2009, where she captained the Sri Lanka Schools Basketball team and became the vice captain of Sri Lanka Schools Netball team in the same year.

She gave up netball and now concentrating only on basketball, will be participating in the Defence Services Basketball Championship to be played from March 4 to 6. She will be Sri Lanka's representative for the Top Model of the World pageant which will be held in Egypt in March this year.

Her father's alms giving after the completion of seven days of his demise, will be conducted at her residence, Rukmalgama, Kottawa on February 16 (Sunday). Mother Nirosha Nishanthi Gunawijeya and her sister, an Advanced Level student of St Joseph's Balika Vidyalaya, Nugegoda are her family members.