Kandy sports hope for dawn of a new era

by Hafiz Marikar

Sports fans in Kandy are leaping for joy following the election of a UNP government which they think is more sports-friendly that any other party in the country.

But prime minister Ranil Wickremasinghe is yet to make his stance clear on sports and it is being hoped that the entry of rugby promoter Malik Samarawickrema to parliament from the National List along with former Sports Minister Lakshman Kiriella can spell something positve in Kandy which has seen the demise of many sports with the exception of rugby for want of facilities.

Here in Kandy many sports promoters have come and gone but standards have dropped alarmingly.

The Sunday Observer learns that Samarawickrema and Kiriella are planning to draw up a blueprint for sports in Kandy.

Analysts contend that what Kandy needs today is a multi-purpose stadium designed to be used for a variety of events like tennis, basketball, volleyball, football, badminton, table tennis, netball, track and field, squash and swimming. Kandy also lacks conference and meeting facilities and an indoor stadium. Samarawickrema, was a top class rugby scrum half who played for Royal College in the late1960s and later played for CR and FC and the country and was a live-wire of the Longden Place Club.He was also the Sri Lanka team manager, treasurer and president of the SLRFU.

Kiriella is a former Royal College and Law College sportsman.